Salvation
by Xiana Asuka
Summary: Religion was not number one on Shishido Ryou’s list of Problems With The World, but it certainly made the top 10. It was the most important thing in Ootori Choutarou's life. Can they somehow compromise and find true salvation? Silver Pair. Complete!
1. Part 1: Creation

**Xiana:** Another Silver Pair story from me. For some reason… I don't know why I like writing them so much, considering they're not my "usual type" of pairing. Oh well… It's kind of long. I broke it into four chapters though it was originally one long chapter because I'm a review whore and I figured I'd get more this way. Haha!

**Disclaimer: **I wrote and wrote for two weeks straight and if I owned Prince of Tennis I'd be making some money right now for sure! Also, I really don't know much about Catholicism so if I get something wrong feel free to correct me! Finally, Choutarou is _not_ actually Christian, as stated quite definitively in OVA 8, also known as the best episode ever. Hyotei!

**Pairing: **Silver Pair, Golden Pair and Dirty Pair mentioned.

**Rating:** T, I suppose. Some language and, erm, suggestive themes. Also religion, so if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. Or something.

**Dedicated:** To Keselyx Meeko Lyszerxon. Because it's so… fitting? Nyaa, it might not be the kind of thing you like, though. Oh well, we'll see what happens. Sorry for stealing your anecdote though to be fair I did the same thing. Also, maybe written for Valentine's Day/Choutarou's birthday though to be honest I didn't think of that at the time.

**Suggested Listening:** HYDE's entire _Faith_ album, particularly "Jesus Christ," "Made in Heaven" (My official OshiGaku theme), and "Perfect Moment."

* * *

_**Salvation**_

_Part 1: Creation_

_"Listen for the voice of God and follow it, and in time you will find your salvation. __"_  
-Death Note Episode 1 "Rebirth."_  
_

* * *

_1.1_

* * *

Religion was not number one on Shishido Ryou's list of Problems With The World, but it certainly made the top 10. His parents had never instilled any religious values along with the moral ones they had imposed on him in his youth, preferring to remain secular and mildly agnostic. At the age of 7, Shishido had come up with a theory about the universe that closely resembled Hinduism while sitting at home, bored out of his mind, on a rainy day; when he was 12 and could properly appreciate what he had done, he promptly dismissed all religion as a sham. If a little kid could make something like that up on his own –something that a sizeable percentage of the world believed in- wasn't it likely that most faiths were just products of overly-fecund imaginations and fear of death? At the age of 13, Shishido learned the word "atheism" from his history teacher in the middle of a lecture about religions of the world, and proudly proclaimed his lack of faith to anyone who bothered to ask his religious status.

The only person ever to do so had been his doubles partner and best friend, Ootori Choutarou. He had asked regarding a sleepover the two were to have, because the entire family woke early on Sundays to go to morning mass, and he was wondering if Shishido would like to accompany them. Shishido had demurred, saying that he had never set foot in a church in his life, and never wanted to, either.

He only realized belatedly that he had probably hurt Choutarou's feelings when the eternally polite Ootori hung up the phone without so much as a _"Ja ne"_ to signal the end of the conversation.

Shishido hadn't been raised to be particularly tolerant of the beliefs of others. Respecting the more major religions around was simple. He could deal with Jirou and his prized Buddha statue, and he wouldn't disturb a grain of sand in Atobe's spectacular zen garden. However, Choutarou was a Christian, and a Catholic at that. Shishido wasn't particularly certain of the details of the different sects of Christianity, especially considering that no one he had met besides Choutarou followed that religion, but he gathered that Catholics were known for being rather extreme in their beliefs. As one who had never been constrained by what he saw as the burden of faith, he was suitably leery of the situation.

But wariness and outright rudeness were two completely different things, and Shishido knew he wouldn't be able to withstand The Look that Ootori would surely give him if he didn't quickly make amends. He called back and informed him that "I was only joking, Choutarou. I'd be happy to go with you guys."

That Sunday, his worst fears were realized. Not only was going to that church the most awful experience of his life (the sermon would have been boring even if it _hadn't_ been in Latin, and he certainly didn't understand what the stale bread and grape juice represented and why everyone treated them as if they were holy relics when he knew they came straight from a convenience store), but it turned out that the Ootori family was almost ludicrously religious. They even said something ridiculous called "grace" before eating, which was a long and tiresome speech that could have been easily avoided by the word "_itadekimasu._" Choutarou was the worst of the lot. It wasn't just the crucifix he wore around his neck. It was the posters on his wall, the knick-knacks in his room, and the strange light in his eyes that could only be described as _fervor_ when he tried to explain it all to Shishido. He had never been able to look at Choutarou the same way since.

Another event further changed his opinion of his partner. At the end of a particularly heated match against a doubles pair from Yamabuki, Choutarou had been overcome by emotion and had embraced Shishido in a tight and entirely too passionate hug. The strange thing was that he hadn't minded at the time, had even reciprocated, much to his and Ootori's surprise. The other thing that he had noticed at the time was that when they finally broke apart, Choutarou seemed be breathing more heavily than usual, and had begun to flush a shade darker than his normal coloring. Of course, it didn't seem odd at all when one considered the length of the match, the heat of the day, and the decreasing flow of adrenaline that had kept them going the whole time. But when one also took into account Ootori's increased propensity to watch him, hover around him, and appear as if he was constantly on the verge of saying _something_ important to Shishido whenever he wasn't focused on a match, things became very suspicious indeed. At long last, he could only conclude that Choutarou had a bit of a crush on his senpai.

After continuing to consider the matter, he concluded that the feeling was mutual. At this point, he began doing research on the Catholic Church, particularly its policy on homosexuality. What he discovered, at least about the church's official position, left him disgruntled and not exactly hopeful for a happy future with Ootori. Though he was resigned to religious differences coming between them and forcing them apart, he rationalized that he wouldn't know if they would unless he asked Ootori himself.

It was only a coincidence that he asked Choutarou when the normally packed clubhouse was completely deserted save for the two of them. And it was only because after considering all possible options and determining the best one that he "asked" with a kiss.

Choutarou's immediate response was to return the favor, and the two made out happily for a while before the part of Choutarou's brain that was controlled by religion found its keys and walked back in to reclaim the house that had been thus defiled by the part of Choutarou's brain that was nothing more than a rebellious teenager throwing a party and finally Getting Some while the parents were away.

At least, that was the analogy that Shishido's _own_ brain came up with as he flew across the room and smashed into a locker. As he refocused gradually, he noticed that Choutarou was dithering, unsure whether to go and help Shishido out or not, and that this problem was causing some serious emotional pain. Shishido solved this problem by standing up on his own… then made it worse by toppling back onto the ground. After this, Ootori was able to make a decision and finally rushed over to help.

"Sh-Shishido-senpai! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to, it's just that I overreacted a little and I-"

"Yes, I noticed," Shishido interrupted, more sharply than he had meant to.

"Oh… Oh, yes… I'm sorry… Now, um, what exactly hurts?" Choutarou asked, desperately trying to salvage the situation.

"It's my head… I think I smacked against that hinge up there," Shishido said, pointing up at the offending locker as his vision wobbled and the room turned sideways for some odd reason.

If it was possible, Ootori's expression grew even more concerned. "Oh no! Senpai, you might have gotten a concussion or something! Um, let's see… I'll try and make you more comfortable, and then I'll go get help." Shishido was happy to learn that Ootori was very pragmatic in an emergency-type situation, but disappointed that he had to find this out first-hand.

This sentiment was reinforced further when Ootori slid his shirt off and used it to cushion Shishido's head and staunch the blood that was beginning to flow from a large cut at the base of his skull. If only it had been… Hiyoshi or someone that had gotten shoved into a locker by Ootori instead. Then he would have been able to fully appreciate the sight of a half-dressed Choutarou. However… that would imply that the other party had been the one kissing Choutarou, and Shishido wasn't going to allow that in his half-lucid thoughts. So it would have been best if the other, incidental character had run to call for help so that Choutarou could have continued to watch over and protect him while he stared appreciatively up at nicely defined abs. But the best possible situation wouldn't have involved any emergencies or injuries at all because Choutarou wouldn't have rejected him in this version of the story, and they could have lived happily ever after, la la la…

Sadly, Shishido lost consciousness before Choutarou returned with Atobe and two of the paramedics Atobe kept around "just in case," and wasn't able to enjoy the feeling of Choutarou holding his hand tightly the entire ride to the hospital.

* * *

_1.2_

* * *

"_No major damage was sustained, but it'll be best if he avoids athletic activities for a few days and stays overnight for observation."_

"_Um…Mr. Doctor, sir? Do you think it would be all right if I…if I stayed here for a little while? I… I promise I wouldn't be a bother… I just want to apologize to him really quick…"_

"_I'm sure that'll be fine, as long as you're sure not to over-stimulate him. I'll allow it as long as you promise to inform us if you note a change in his condition."_

A callused hand folded itself over Shishido's fingers, and he opened his eyes to see Choutarou sitting beside him, waiting for him to wake. Shishido waved at him weakly; Choutarou jumped guiltily and blushed.

"Um, I'm really sorry, senpai. I didn't meant to… to get you hurt… I don't know why I reacted… er, so violently… I…er, um, I…"

"Yeah, okay. Apology accepted. I don't care that you did it, you know. What I'm really interested in is why. Why did you react that way to me?" Neither physical nor emotional pain hurt him. It wasn't physical pain because the doctors had given him plenty of painkillers, and it wasn't emotional pain either because he had been completely ready to be rejected. He was just honestly curious about what reasons and excuses Choutarou was going to give him.

"I, er… well, I… I didn't want to be let into temptation. I do have, erm, strong feelings for you, Shishido-senpai, but I don't think that's what God wants for me."

So religion had been dragged into it this early on, huh? Shishido didn't even know where to start pointing out the holes in the argument, but he started with what he felt was the most interesting part of Choutarou's statement. "And can you explain these 'strong feelings' in greater detail?"

"I…" Ootori ducked his head, clearly feeling embarrassed. "I like you more than others, even though you should love everyone equally, and I… I've thought about… doing _stuff_ with you… like what we did in that clubroom before the accident..."

"Hmmm… Interesting, interesting. Would you, then, qualify these feelings as 'love?' Do you love me, Choutarou?" Shishido teased, not noticing that this was perhaps not the best question to ask. He had a head injury, okay? He wasn't thinking as clearly as usual!

"N-no! I don't love you!" Ouch. Very vehement, that. While Shishido had been expecting outright rejection, he hadn't expected it to be so harsh, especially from Ootori, of all people. "The feelings I have for you… they aren't love. It's lust. I'm being tested by God and tempted by the Devil. I'm sorry, Shishido-senpai."

"But _I_ love you… and I'm completely sure of that one," Shishido pressed, not quite realizing that it would be best to move on and acquiesce the point for the time being. "Unless you're trying to accuse me of being the devil."

"E-everyone is put on this earth for a reason…" Choutarou started shakily.

"And my reason for existence is to drag you out of God's light and down to the depths of hell?" Shishido couldn't help but wonder. "I'm really glad I don't have to follow _your_ religious principles if you can believe in something like that."

Two bright red spots appeared on Choutarou's cheeks. "That wasn't what I meant at all, senpai! Let me finish before you start making assumptions about people!" Shishido noticed how he unconsciously twisted his crucifix tightly as he spoke, as if it would repress his anger. It wasn't working. "I only meant that, maybe I'm supposed to help you find your true path, to help save you or something!"

"Oh, so now you're trying to convert me? Yeah, that's a lot better than what I said! I truly love you, Choutarou, but when it comes to religion, you're such a stubborn jackass!"

Choutarou flinched, but continued. "Yeah, well, what about you? Just because you don't believe in the Creator, you think that all religion is baseless and a waste of time! You don't know how faith enriches people! It promotes good values, and makes people want to help others, and it gives them a reason and way to live their lives. I bet you've never even considered that there could be life after death because you're so busy looking down on everyone who thinks so!"

"Yes, I have considered it, actually! And I don't look down on people! Listen, I guess religion's useful in promoting morals, sure. But I don't see how you can say that it's necessary for something like that! I turned out okay, didn't I?"

"Not really! I'll be the first to admit that it could have been worse, that you could have turned out to be some sort of… violent anarchist or something, but your entire argument thus far has proven that you don't have a decent respect for others."

"I can't respect people like _you_ that take everything so seriously. Christianity? Catholicism? _Fine._ But you keep blathering on about God and Jesus and temptation, and what exactly do you know about those things? Isn't 14 a little young to know your entire stance on religion now, forever, and always?"

Ootoiri remained silent for a minute. "If you're still trying to tempt me… You're not doing a very good job of it," he said finally. "And if you feel that you know everything there is to know about _my_ faith and _my_ life and therefore have the right to change _my_ opinion for me… then I guess we have nothing left to say to each other." He strode swiftly away and out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

It was only after Shishido fully comprehended that Choutarou had left –had actually walked out on him- that the feeling started to return to his fingers and he realized that Choutarou had been gripping his hand nearly as tightly as he had the crucifix.

* * *

_1.3_

* * *

Shishido returned to school without incident. Obviously, Ootori was tending to avoid him more than usual, but their teamwork was still flawless (though he wasn't strictly allowed to play by doctor's orders). Still, Choutarou had taken to spending more time with Hiyoshi and some of the other second years so that he didn't have to be around Shishido any more than was absolutely necessary. As a result, Shishido hung around Atobe, Jirou, Oshitari, and even _Mukahi_ instead, and this pronounced difference did not go unnoticed by the others.

"So he rejected you, Ryou-kun?" Atobe smirked.

"What do you expect? He doesn't have the experience to please Ootori-kun. Don't worry, Ryou-kun. I'd be willing to help you out with that… for a price," Oshitari purred.

"Yuushi!" Gakuto complained. "You can't do that, you belong to me, remember?"

"I'm fairly certain it is _you_ who belongs to _me_," Oshitari corrected, leaning down and kissing Gakuto on the forehead.

Before the two could go on with what would surely be an overly-romantic scene, Shishido finally spoke up. "Wait, does Choutarou know… about you two?"

Oshitari frowned. "I'm pretty sure that the whole school… scratch that, I'm pretty sure that every middle school tennis player in Japan knows about us."

"It's not exactly a well-kept secret," Mukahi added, and Atobe agreed. (Jirou had long since fallen asleep.)

"But then… how does he feel about you two… being together? I mean, his religion… And before you ask, yes, he rejected me. But I didn't expect anything else… and he seemed pretty pleased with my technique, thank you very much, Oshitari-san. It's just his stupid religion!"

Atobe and Mukahi laughed; Oshitari suppressed a chuckle and answered the question. "I'm pretty sure he already thought we were going to hell, but still doesn't approve. He's far too polite to say anything, though."

"I see… thanks." He turned to leave, but stopped when he was Atobe and Gakuto waiting with expectant looks on their faces. "Oh, would you two like to offer your oh-so-helpful advice?" Shishido sighed resignedly.

They grinned evilly in unison. "In Ore-sama's professional opinion," Atobe began, "Ryou-kun needs to be a little kinder to little Ootori. After all, the Atobe family mansion wasn't built in a day (it took a whole week, actually), and since he's only ever known one way of life, it's going to take him a while to get used to the idea of going against it by following his heart instead. Now, if you listen to me, everything will work out perfectly."

Gakuto scoffed. "Yeah, right. Now, what you've got to do is screw religion, and once you're finished with that, start screwing Ootori instead. If you're really as good as you're insinuating you are, he won't stand a chance. He'll be in love with you before you know it."

Shishido grinned slightly. "He's already in love with me, Gakuto. He just hasn't agreed to go out with me yet." Turning to face everyone, he announced, "While you all know that I hate to agree with Mukahi on anything, I concede that he does have a bit of a point… By which I mean that he's absolutely correct when he says 'screw religion!' Argh! It's so annoying having to deal with it… especially when all religion is so completely useless!"

This last remark had the effect of waking Jirou, who sprang up from the bench he had been sleeping on. "Don't think I didn't hear that, Ryou-Ryou-kun! Some weird things that those American people make up, like Mormonism and Scientology, those are stupid! They really give religion a bad name! But then there are the good ones! Liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiike… Buddhism!" He produced a small, golden statue of Buddha from his pocket and held it in front of Shishido's face. "Now apologize to Buddha," he said sternly.

Shishido knew that there was only one thing he could do in a situation like this, so he bowed his head and mumbled, "I'm sorry, Buddha."

"That's better! That wasn't so bad, was it, Ryou-Ryou-kun?" Jirou stowed the statue safely back in his pocket and laid back down on the bench. "Now, if you'll excuse…"

He was asleep before he finished the sentence.

* * *

_1.4_

* * *

40 kilometers away from where Shishido was asking Buddha's forgiveness, Choutarou was getting some advice of his own, from the two people he was sure would be able to help him out.

"Wait, you're… Hyotei's Ootori, right? What are you doing here?" the black-haired boy asked.

"Nyaa! Did you come to have a match against us? Where's your partner?" asked the redhead, jumping onto his own partner's back and looking around eagerly.

"Um… well, that's why I'm here. You two, um… have a relationship, don't you?"

"We are on the same team… and we are doubles partners, you know…"

Choutarou's face began to heat up. "N-no… I mean… like the relationship between our Doubles 2 pair…"

Their expressions changed to those of comprehension. "Ohhhhhhhh… Well, yes, but not _exactly_ the same as those two… I'd say we're a bit… less _promiscuous_ than them, ne, Eiji?"

"That's right, Oishi! But why do you ask?"

"Ah, well… I find myself in a… situation with Shishido-senpai, and I can't really talk to anyone on our team… gossip gets around quickly at our school, and I know you guys don't have a vested interest in the situation."

"Tell us about it," Oishi requested, leading Choutarou and Eiji over to a bench. They took a seat, and Ootori relayed the details to the pair.

"I… know that his feelings are pure… but I don't think that my own are. And I can't just knowingly go against God's teachings. I don't want to hurt Shishido-senpai. But I also want to do what's right. I know about you two… and I think that somehow, you belong together. But based solely on the principles of my faith, it's a perversion of God's intentions for a man to be with another man. Maybe I'm a rebellious teenager. Maybe it's just a phase I'm going through, and I'll grow out of it soon enough. But Catholicism stresses obedience to God's well, and I… I'm starting to question my faith," he concluded, hugging his knees to his chest and burying his face in his hands.

A soft tap on his shoulder made him look up and into Eiji's grinning eyes. "Hey, don't worry about it. I have to admit I don't really know much about your religion, but from what I _do_ know… You guys say that 'God is Love,' right?" When Ootori nodded, Eiji continued, "If Shishido's feelings for you really are as pure as you say they are, that implies to me that it's love. That maybe it is God that's behind it after all."

"Not to mention… the church has admitted that it's been wrong about things in the past. Remember, they did change their position from creationism to 'intelligent design' a while back, and publicly stated that not all parts of the Bible were to be taken literally," Oishi added. "So that tends to prove to me at least that while God certainly has the final word on everything, human beings aren't divine. Sometimes they make mistakes. Sometimes they don't quite understand what God wants from them, and I'm not entirely sure… but I get the feeling that this might be one of those cases."

"We can't tell you what to do, Ootori-kun, but we can tell you what we've thought about… for the time that we've spent together, anyway. We know how others feel, but we believe we're right… that you and Shishido are right. But you should probably talk to some other people too, and get their opinions."

"If you talk to your parents, or a priest or something, even just discussing the situation as an abstract concept, I'm sure they'll give you a slightly different viewpoint. It'll probably have a different bias than ours has, but between the two extremes, you're sure to find some sort of common ground for compromise."

"Okay…" Choutarou sighed heavily. "You guys are a lot more rational and a _lot_ easier to talk to than senpai is…"

"Speaking of Shishido," they chimed in unison, "you need to talk to him, too."

"But-"

"Hey, hey, listen! You're going to have to tell him what you decide on sooner or later! And you need good communication for a good relationship, if that's what you eventually decide on."

"Even if it isn't you need to be able to talk to be an effective doubles pair. Plus, if he's not respecting your faith and your choices, you need to know that, and you need to tell him it's unacceptable."

"Right, right… Thank you for all your help, you guys. I knew that you'd be able and willing to help me out." Impulsively, Choutarou added, "I hope that… everything works out for the best. With you guys too, I mean," before he left, ready for the long train ride home and a chance to re-organize his thoughts.

After he was out of sight, Eiji, who had been severely restraining himself in front of Ootori, leapt into Oishi's lap. "Nyaa! That was kind of sudden, don't you think?"

"Yeah, I was a little surprised too. I didn't think anyone would ever randomly come to us for advice –someone from _Hyotei_ seeking _relationship_ advice, no less." Oishi began absentmindedly stroking Eiji's hair. "I hope things work out for him…"

"Aww, yeah, me too! They make such a good couple… for some reason. And maybe it's just me… I always thought that they were already together. Ne, Oishi?"

"Yeah, I kind of got that impression as well. The one thing he said at the beginning, though? About 'a vested interest' or something?"

"Heheh, I thought that was funny too. Of course we have a personal stake in the matter. We are the Golden Pair, and they're Silver… and respectable, top teams like us gotta watch each other's backs. Not only that… well, he should have known that we were going to support love no matter what, ne?"

"Yeah." Oishi hugged Eiji tightly to agree. "Speaking of which, shall we get on with what we were doing before and help Kaoru-kun with his… issues?"

"Ne, if we keep this up, they'll think we're some sort of counseling service and come to us with all their little problems."

"As long as we can help them out. Isn't… that for the best?"

"Yeah, I guess… As long as I'm with you."

"You'll always be with me, Eiji. For as long as you want to be."

"Guess you're stuck with me forever and ever then, Oishi."

"Guess so."

* * *

**Xiana:** That was part one. There will be four parts total, in case you forgot or didn't read the note at the top?? Um… yes. By the end of the story, it should be pretty clear what my position is on all this, if anyone cares ;D I'll get the next part up after I'm finished with my history homework x-x;;

Jirou makes me laugh. He's fun to write about :D

**Review, ne?**


	2. Part 2: Desperation

**Xiana:** Here is the second part… All three of the potential titles for this chapter started with "D." Weirrrrrd… Also, there are lots of semicolons in 2.1 for some reason. I like semicolons :D

Same disclaimers, etc. apply

**Suggested Listening:** "Existence" by L'Arc en Ciel, because I know how to spell. Also "Morobito Kozorite" by Junko Iwao because it's basically "Joy to the World" in Japanese and I have it on my iPod for some reason. "Motteke! Sailor Fuku" is another good choice because it's so energetic! And if you haven't finished listening to _Faith,_ well, go ahead and do that too.

* * *

**_Salvation_**

_Part 2: Desperation_

"_The salvation of the world is in man's suffering."_  
-William Faulkner

* * *

_2.1_

* * *

The next day finally dawned, and Shishido was ready to follow (part of) Mukahi's advice and make Choutarou his, once and for all. The school day seemed to drag on (Science in particular seemed to last _hours_), and tennis practice was even worse, mostly because Choutarou was so tantalizingly close, but partially because if Atobe ordered another drill or set of laps, he was going to punch him in the face, consequences be damned. 

At long last, practice, was over. After taking a quick shower and deliberately _not_ looking at Ootori while he was changing (which led to a rather… disturbing view of Oshitari and Mukahi), he asked Choutarou to meet him for a "discussion," as he put it. Of course, Choutarou agreed eagerly. The three days that they hadn't talked to each other hadn't felt good at all; it was becoming more and more obvious that the two really needed each other, at least in terms of simplest friendship. Again, Shishido cursed the barrier of religion stopping Choutarou from accepting him, but didn't consider that, if it weren't for the fatal attraction between the two, they wouldn't have had to deal with the issue and could have been happy remaining simply friends.

"Hey, Choutarou. I just wanted to apologize to you, I guess. I probably wasn't thinking very clearly, and I know I got carried away and said some really lame things to you…" Shishido didn't regret many of the things that he had told Ootori, since it was the truth as he saw it, but he knew from experience that courtesy was the way to go if you wanted to manipulate him.

"Oh! No, I'm the one that should be sorry, Shishido-senpai, I shouldn't have told you things like that after I had just landed you in hospital. I should have known that you didn't really mean what you said… You… didn't mean it, right?" Choutarou asked, looking back hopefully at Shishido. If Shishido really was sorry for what he had said and done, it would be so much easier to make a decision.

"Oh, yeah. Gosh, Choutarou, if you don't want me to be so mean to you while under the influence of medication and head injury, you shouldn't be so violent," he teased.

"Okay, senpai, I promise not to beat you up anymore." Shishido had obviously been trying to change the subject, but Ootori didn't seem to realize it, and kept harping on it. "So… now that you're all healed up from my terrible abuse… would you like to have our discussion again?"

Shishido couldn't very well say no, but he was starting to wonder if Ootori had a kind of hidden agenda in bringing this back up. "Sure, Choutarou. That sounds good to me. But might I ask why?"

"Ano…because I am working hard to find what is right, I need to know how you feel. I need to know if you can respect me."

"Oh, of course I respect you. I was just… yeah. Well, I did actually want to talk to you about some of that stuff anyway," Shishido lied. "Like when you said I was the devil."

"I never said that!"

"You insinuated it."

"Even for you, that was a bit of a logical leap, Shishido-san." The words were slightly bitter, but not harsh as they had been three days ago.

"Okay, okay. I get it. I'm not really the devil after all. I'll drop it. But it certainly sounded-"

"Ooh… you're so annoying sometimes that you just might be a demon of some sort." Choutarou hit Shishido playfully on the shoulder; Shishido pretended to stumble back in pain.

"I thought you weren't going to abuse me anymore, you jerk! Going back on your promises so soon… maybe you're the demon."

Choutarou sniffed, sublimely unconcerned. "Eh, since you're a demon now, you can't take any physical damage from a mortal like me. You'll get over it. Besides, I was going easy on you… if you keep making me mad, I'll whip out my crucifix on you, and then you'll be really sorry."

As if noticing the necklace looped around Choutarou's neck for the first time, Shishido pretended to draw back in horror. "Oh no, the power of God! Curses! Retreat, retreat!"

They laughed, both thinking how nice it was to be able to joke about religion. Choutarou was devout, but not to the extent that he couldn't see a bit of humor in the situation; Shishido was just glad that he could have a conversation with Choutarou without it degenerating into a shouting match. It couldn't last, he knew, because Choutarou seemed determined to discuss this, and Shishido could only talk about religion for so long before he slipped and accidentally hurt Choutarou's feelings again. There was only so much playful bantering that could go on before it became ridiculous, not to mention obvious that he was avoiding the topic, so he decided it would be best if he was the one to bring up the subject again. Most likely, Choutarou would see it as eagerness and be more willing to ignore one or two comments that would surely offend him otherwise.

Shishido was determined to transition into it smoothly. "Hey, now that we've determined that you're righteous and I'm one of Satan's minions, how's a rousing theological debate sound?" Or not. "Really, though, what specifically did you want to ask me about? I know that there's lots of things I should be apologizing for, but is there anything I can clear up to show you, er, how I really feel?" Tactic 1: Don't sound belligerent, sound passive and non-confrontational. Tactic 2: Make him tell you what he wants to know, so that you don't have to cover up more than necessary, avoid offending him with misspoken words, and (most importantly) don't cause any further division between the two of you. Tactic 3: Appear guilty so that he feels guilty about making _you_ feel guilty and lets you off easier.

"Um… I know you obviously have strong opinions on the subject… and I obviously have strong faith in my beliefs. But I also know that we like each other quite a lot. What do you think is the best way for the two of us to compromise?"

It was a surprisingly deep question that Shishido hadn't quite been ready for. "Um… that's a hard one. Start out with something easier next time, okay?" he stalled while desperately searching for the best answer. "Anyway, I guess that the best way for us to compromise… You would have to stop being so religious." Apparently, he waited longer than a natural pause to continue talking, because Choutarou started forward angrily. "No, no, wait just a second. I didn't say you'd have to give it up all together. You'd just have to scale it back a little. You could still go to church every week, but if you could cut back on the random paraphernalia, that would be good."

Choutarou frowned. "You don't mean…"

"I'm afraid I do. Your 'Jesus Died For Pedro' shirt has got to go. No, in all seriousness though, I'm pretty sure that, er, God doesn't want you to support the companies that make stuff like that… most of them are just trying to take advantage of people like you." He realized that this last comment may have been slightly offensive and rushed to qualify it. "That is, some of them do, at least… and you could keep some of your things… I actually do like that shirt, and…" Struck by sudden inspiration, he reached up and tugged at Choutarou's cross. "I'd even be willing to let you keep this little trinket."

"Oh, thanks. It's only been blessed by the Pope himself…"

"Really? I didn't know that. I was only teasing you anyway. Of course you can keep something like that, I know how much it means to you. You said compromise, and that means I have to give some things up too. For my part, I'd be willing to go to church with you more often. I'd do my best to respect all of your important ceremonies and stuff, even the ones that I really don't understand. Like that 'Communion' thing or whatever, with the grape juice? I sooooooo do not get that."

"Well, it has to do with taking Jesus into your body, how he gave his flesh and blood for our sins…"

"Okay, okay. You can tell me later. That can be another one of your conditions, okay? To teach me about all these different rituals and stuff that you guys do, so that I can respect them better. 'Understanding fosters respect' or something like that, right?"

"Yeah, I can understand that, senpai. Like with the Communion, which you mentioned before… I guess that a lot of missionaries had trouble converting natives in Africa and South America and stuff because they thought that Christians practiced cannibalism because of it."

"Wait, what? You guys _aren't_ cannibals? Darn… I was so ready to join you, too!" The sarcasm slipped out before Shishido could stop it, but luckily, Ootori took it as a joke.

"Nope, so sorry. No cannibalism for you today. But really… considering that some of those godless natives really were cannibals… Just a little ironic."

"Maybe that's why some of them converted. They figured, 'Ooh, if we convert to this and go along with what these white guys tell us, free brains on Sundays!' No, never mind. Only zombies eat brains," Shishido joked.

Choutarou frowned at him. "That's not why they converted. They did it because they learned about the light of God."

"I know, Cho. I was kidding. That's all." Shishido sighed. Apparently, Choutarou didn't appreciate zombie humor. Or one Christians-are-cannibals joke per day was his limit. He had only made the (rather lame) joke in order to take some of the sting off of Choutarou's words anyway: his comment about "godless natives" struck Shishido as insensitive and prejudiced. Who was to say that native religions were wrong, that they weren't as potentially valuable as Christianity? Shishido was an atheist (and it was killing him to talk about "God" with Choutarou as if "He" actually existed), but polytheistic religions based on natural elements made a lot more sense to him than a single guy in charge and a bunch of stories to go along with him that somebody else had probably made up millennia ago. And speaking of atheism, that "godless natives" thing implied that he, Shishido, being godless, was backwards, primitive, and inferior. To think that Choutarou thought that Shishido was the one that needed to be more respectful!

"Anyway, before we got distracted… you would go to church with me… and you would respect what we do…"

"Ah, yes! I'd participate in church-type activities with you, if you wanted, and…" he paused for dramatic effect, "when we're supporting ourselves and living on our own, when we're doing taxes and need some rebates… I might be willing to donate… to a charity with a religious agenda!"

"Haha… such devotion."

"Well, what do you expect? I'm not asking you to give up your religion, so you can't ask me to give up my lack thereof."

"I guess my first question's been answered, then. Now…are there any problems that you have with my religion? Things that you just can't accept?"

Shishido's first reaction was to say, "Yes, they believe that there is a God, and I just can't accept that," but he rather felt that Ootori would get a little angry about that one and refrained. After all, he knew it was a trick question. "There's nothing that I absolutely can't accept… but for a faith that's based on accepting and loving others, it sure seems to judge certain groups unequally… homosexuals, for example," he said pointedly. "I understand that there's a lot of tradition that goes along with it, but I definitely disagree with that policy."

Choutarou smiled, and Shishido knew that he had answered correctly. He almost wanted to cheer because his plan was working so well, but again, that might have been fairly obvious, so he settled for smirking cockily to himself.

"So then, you think it's okay… for us to be together, Shishido-senpai?"

Aha. Now that one, Shishido was ready for. "Yes. Or rather, I think it's okay for _you _to be with _me_. It's the same logic that everyone on my side will use, but… 'God is Love,' ne? And I suppose that this might be a bit of an assumption, but I think that us two, we're in love with each other. We… are all God's children, right? So if it's truly love, and I really think it is, God is the reason for it, and he's going to keep supporting us no matter what."

He wanted to throw up after he said that, despite all the practice that had gone into it, but Choutarou smiled again, and Shishido knew he was on the right track. "Ah, I see! That does make sense! So when the Bible-" He was cut off by a vibrating sound coming from his bag. "Oh, that's my mom." He picked up and started talking into his cell phone, hanging up quickly. "I have to go now, Shishido-senpai… but I have one last question for you. Would you… ever be willing to convert to Christianity? I mean… it wouldn't even have to be Catholicism, and-"

"Yes." This simple word was enough to shut Choutarou up completely. Shishido continued, "I would. I would do it for you." Then he pulled Choutarou down towards him and kissed him. "Go on, get a move on. She'll be waiting for you, and I would hate for her to have a bad impression of her son's new boyfriend, ne?"

"Ah… Ah, of course! I…I…I'll see you tomorrow and we can finish talking then!" Choutarou nearly tripped at least three times on his way towards his mother's car, and his face was a nicely bright shade of red.

Shishido smiled. Success. His grin grew when he received a text message a few seconds later.

"You're right about one thing for sure. I love you, senpai! Xo chouta," he read aloud, then re-pocketed his phone and walked off to tell the others of what couldn't _possibly_ be failure.

* * *

_2.2_

* * *

"Choutarou wasn't sure, but basically he knew I was right and he couldn't deny that he wanted me. I don't think that even Atobe could have done it better himself," Shishido finished, grinning at the circle of regulars that had gathered to hear his story. 

"I figure you're a little closer to Ootori than I am," Atobe smirked, "but I don't doubt that I could do a better job of seducing him if I wanted to."

"You better not," Shishido threatened. "Choutarou is mine, and you can't have him. You better leave him alone."

"Or what? Che, whatever. Like I'd want to deal with whatever you think is good quality… peasant."

Everyone started laughing, except for Shishido, who growled angrily at Atobe. "Shut the hell up. Just because I'm not as bloody rich as you are…"

"Not as 'bloody rich' as any of us are… scholarship student," Mukahi taunted. Shishido made to throw a punch at him, but decided against it (Oshitari wouldn't have interfered, but as Shishido knew from experience, Gakuto bit _hard_), and turned back to Atobe.

"As a matter of fact, I happen to think that Choutarou is of _very_ high quality. You guys are going to say that this is really lame, but I… I adore him. I love him, and I don't care what any of you say about me. But I'll protect him, no matter what, so you guys can just shut up and leave him alone."

"You're right, that was lame," Oshitari commented, not bothering to look up from his book.

"Like you can talk," Shishido snorted. "What's that, the new volume of Gossip Girl?"

"Yes, actually." Everyone else was too stunned to say anything. As Gakuto started giggling, and before the others could join in, Oshitari continued smoothly, "And even so, you are certainly 20 times 'lamer' than this is, if not 50." He gave Gakuto, who had predicted the punchline ahead of time, a high five and then pulled him into a dark corner for some quality snogging time.

The others, who were still laughing at Shishido, turned pointedly away so that they wouldn't bother the couple while they continued the harassment. Before they could, Jirou woke up from his state of dormant hibernation.

"Hey, Ryou-Ryou-kun! How did things with you and Oto-to-tan go? Did you set aside your religious differences and learn to follow the teachings and principles of Buddha?" he asked excitedly.

"Yeah, Jirou, we did. Thanks for all your help," Shishido deadpanned. Sure enough, that was enough for Jirou, who promptly fell, snoring, into Hiyoshi's lap. Hiyoshi started flailing around wildly, trying to get him off, but it wasn't until Kabaji stepped in and carried Jirou off that he was freed.

"He does raise a good point," Atobe realized. "What exactly _did_ you do about that whole religious thing? Knowing you, you probably didn't even discuss it because you chickened out. Plus, you said that even Ore-sama couldn't do better, which implies the same thing, if for no other reason than I know you well enough to know that you'd probably screw up and hurt his feelings if you really discussed it truthfully with him."

"Oh, ye of little faith," Shishido said, rather ironically twisting a religious phrase for his own use. "I already talked it over with him, and we even came to a sort of compromise. It's all going to work out."

The others looked skeptically at him, even Oshitari and Mukahi. Shishido laughed nervously. "All right, so I bs'd my way through most of it. But what do you expect? That guy's as pious as Jirou, but not in a 'mildly-humorous, easy-to-deal-with' way. It's more the 'constant, unnecessarily forceful' type of thing, and it's the one thing I can't stand about him. He's so hard to deal with when the subject comes up! But I did my best, and I did a good job of it, too."

"So you intend to base this relationship with Ootori on lies?" Oshitari wondered. "Nothing good can come of that, you know. I'm sure Gakuto here could tell you all about that…"

"Ne, Yuushi! You're so mean, bringing up things like that that are better left in the past!"

"Oh, don't complain, Gakuto. Adversity builds character, you know, and you could certainly use some more of that."

"Che, what about you? Of all people, _I_ should know about your disturbing lack of morals."

"Good point. Well then, shall we be immoral together?" Without waiting for an answer, Oshitari dragged Gakuto back into the dark corner, where they started doing what was definitely more risqué than making out.

"They really have no shame," Atobe sniffed. "But wait, you lied to Ootori? What'd you lie about?"

"It wasn't so much… lying. I just kept talking about God and all this crap. I have to use language he'll understand to get my point across, ne? It was really hard to do, though… Basing your arguments off of something as ridiculous as the Christian god…"

"Better not let Ootori hear you say that."

"I won't, I won't. When I'm around him, I'll be just as polite and well-mannered as you could wish. But with you guys, I don't have to pretend. I mean, you're just my friends, not potential love interests."

"I should certainly hope not!" Hiyoshi exclaimed.

"Eh, Hiyo-ko's jealous of Ootori. You can tell he wants you bad, Ryou-kun."

"Hey, Yoshi-ko. I know you like me and all, but you're going to need to find a new man and get over me," Shishido said seriously.

"As it happens, I'm straight," Hiyoshi hissed.

"Excuse, me, but I cut my hair. Now there's no excuse for you to be liking me like that unless some-one's-in-de-ni-al…" Shishido said in a sing-song voice before turning to Atobe and slapping him five. "Hiyoshi got gekokujou'd," they exclaimed gleefully together.

"Idiots… you're not even using it right…" Hiyoshi gathered his things and stalked off, probably to talk to his more sympathetic friend, Taki (who, it must be noted, did look very feminine indeed).

"Heh, teasing the second-years is so much fun… But yeah. Actually, for almost all of it, I was telling the truth. Like I really was willing to compromise. And one of the questions he asked was if I'd convert to Christianity. I told him I'd do it, and I would, too, even if I didn't really believe in what I was doing. For him… I would do it for him."

"Che, you really are lamer than Gossip Girl. Why don't you go away and preserve the rest of us from being cheesified by your heart-felt romance?" Atobe requested.

"Because you would rather hang around with sleepy-head, the oh-so-talkative Kabaji, and_ those_ two?" He jerked a thumb over his shoulder to point at the aptly named Dirty Pair without having to actually look at them.

"Yes, actually. At least with them, it's fairly obvious that while they have some affection for each other, it's really only about the sex. You… you're too sappy. It's going to be so nauseatingly sweet when you two are finally going out that I may have to kill myself. Or you two instead."

"I'm _really_ sorry… or not. Whatever. But you know… in their own way, those two love each other just as much as Choutarou and I do. Their way is just a little more… graphic."

"Ryou, just leave."

"Fine. I know when I'm not wanted. I think I'll go call Choutarou up. I know he won't reject me like you losers." Overjoyed by this thought, he picked up his pace.

Atobe watched him go distastefully. "He's…skipping?" he finally asked.

"Usu," Kabaji agreed, and that was that.

* * *

_2.3_

* * *

Choutarou was finishing his math homework and thinking about Shishido. The conversation that day had assuaged his fears. His worries had subsided. Shishido loved him. Shishido the atheist loved him enough to have the faith to start believing in God because of him. Perhaps the reason was a bit selfish, but Choutarou knew that it would be the right reason in the end. Actually, he was rather looking forward to converting, to saving Shishido. He knew it would make it easier for himself if Shishido shared his religious beliefs because then it wouldn't be as if he was simply going along with Choutarou's logic for the time being in order to seduce him. It would be the final proof that Choutarou needed to be sure that he was making the right decision –if two people with the same beliefs could separately come to the same conclusion, mightn't it tend to prove that it was the right one? 

He dropped his math book into his schoolbag, wincing at the loud crash that resulted from its fall, and glanced over at the wall. On this wall was a veritable photomosaic of Jesus –a poster he had bought for just a couple hundred yen. It would have to go soon, he knew, in accordance with Shishido's request, but he didn't really need it that much anyway. He had enough faith in Christ's divinity and the power of the Lord without having to prove it with a bunch of mass-produced stuff. Shishido really had a point there, because while some of the companies that made his gear had a positive message for the world, a lot of the others (Nike, for example) probably didn't have God's best interests at heart. Even the necklace that he wore everywhere was an example of materialistic capitalism rather than true devotion. Sure, it had been blessed by the previous Pope, John Paul II, but Choutarou had simply bought it from eBay. Still… it was his most prized possession, his closest connection to the Lord. And he couldn't think that was bad, or worthless. Perhaps someone simply was taking advantage of him, but he couldn't believe that anyone would do such a thing, really. No matter what, it had to be God's wish… so maybe Shishido didn't really have much of a point at all.

Now that Choutarou thought about it, the so-called "compromise" wasn't really all that fair. It didn't seem like Shishido was really giving anything up, while Choutarou made all the sacrifices. Sure, Shishido was going to be "tolerant"… but shouldn't he have already been? And while he was going to respect all the traditions of Christianity, he had left it to Choutarou to teach him everything there was to know rather than taking the initiative and finding out on his own. Wouldn't that be a better way to prove that he loved Choutarou? The more he thought about it, the angrier it made him, and he fully intended to _talk to_ (read: yell at) Shishido about this as soon as he possibly could.

At this moment, his phone started ringing loudly. "Hello?" he asked after a few minutes of frantically rummaging through his bag.

"_Hey, Choutarou. I wanted to talk to you."_ Aha! Shishido-senpai was calling him! Unfortunately Choutarou wasn't ready to yell at him yet, because on the rare occasions that warranted a telling-off from Choutarou, he preferred to plan out what needed to be said ahead of time. Of course, with Shishido, he sometimes got so mad that he spoke without thinking of the consequences… but Shishido always forgave him…_"Hey, Cho. Are you there?"_

"Oh! Y-yes, of course. I was just thinking about how interesting it was that you called just now because I wanted to talk to you as well."

"_Is that so? Well, go ahead then."_

"N-no… I couldn't really… You were the one who called me, so please…" The argument continued for some time until Shishido, never the most patient person, finally gave in.

"_Okay, okay. It's just, I was hanging out with some of the regulars after you left, and we were talking about you. And me. Er… you and me together, that is."_

"Yeah? What about us?"

"_They wanted to know how it had gone between us today, and I told them that I thought it went pretty well. They were surprised at how I was able to remain civil in a conversation centered around religion, but I told them it was all because of you."_

"I see." Choutarou fought to keep his voice neutral, though there were so many things, so many emotions he wanted to express. Annoyance at the "pretty well" part, because now that he thought about it, it hadn't gone well at all; worry about what the others thought, if they would condemn his feelings as shockingly inappropriate, no matter what they thought about Mukahi and Oshitari; irritation that Shishido had the reputation of being rude and insensitive about the beliefs of others; and plain and simple love for Shishido because of his reason.

"_Yeah. Pretty much I had to keep defending you from those jerks, since you weren't there to do it yourself. And then Atobe was all like, 'Oh, Ryou, you're so sappy. Leave me alone!' but I think he's just jealous because he hasn't gotten to experience real love yet. So I had no option but to leave, and I figured I'd call you up."_

"Oh! Well, then I guess you made a good decision. I'm sorry that you had to speak up for me though."

"_No, it's no problem. I would have wanted to… I would have done it even if I didn't feel that way, or know anything about you. I probably wouldn't have claimed that I 'adore' you in a situation like that, however. That's enough about me. What'd you want to talk to me about?"_

"Uh, that is…" All of Choutarou's anger had evaporated instantaneously. Shishido… wasn't exaggerating to try and prove a point. He really was that loyal, and he wouldn't stand for insults stronger than mild teasing, even if he completely agreed with the statement and especially if the insulted party wasn't present. One of the best things about Shishido was his sense of justice, and it was something everyone on the team respected him for, even if they sometimes made fun of him about it. "About that compromise today…" he continued weakly.

"_You've been thinking about that too? Yeah, I guess I could have made more sacrifices for you… or asked less of you… but for a long time, I was… well, I hate to admit it, but I was almost… _disgusted_ by your religion. During that time and before I ever saw you as more than a friend… and after that, to a certain degree… I came up with plenty of things that I didn't like. Some of those old feelings came out before I really had a chance to think about your question, and I'm sorry about that. After that, I tried to think of restrictions I could apply to myself, but I couldn't come up with much, so… Choutarou, I want to hear your version of the compromise. I want us to work this problem out once and for all, so feel free to tell me exactly what you would like from me."_ Shishido's tone was so heartfelt, even over the telephone, that Choutarou couldn't help but completely forgive him. That didn't mean that he didn't have his own ideas for the compromise between the two, however.

"For starters, I thought-" He was interrupted by a voice from downstairs.

"Cho-kun, who are you talking to? It's getting late… Have you finished your homework yet?"

"I'm talking to Shishido-senpai, mom! And I just finished all my math homework!" Choutarou yelled back.

"_But knowing you, you haven't done your science yet,"_ Shishido commented.

"Ahaha, that's true, senpai. You know me so well…"

"_Then I'll let you do that. We can finish this conversation tomorrow as well, 'kay?"_

"Oh, um, well… you don't have to…"

"_Love you, Choutarou. Bye."_

"Goodbye, Shishido-senpai." He set the phone down and returned to the chemistry lab he hadn't _quite_ finished in class, something about butane and propane. It wasn't long before his phone rang again. "Hello?"

Five minutes later, he hung up, an uncharacteristically grim scowl across his normally smiling face.

* * *

_2.4_

* * *

Shishido smiled to himself. In his professional opinion, yesterday's conversation had gone very well. If, perhaps, he hadn't been completely honest the whole time… there would be time enough for that to be slowly revealed later. _Plus,_ he reminded himself, _I was _mostly _truthful. I might have bent the truth a little, I might not have told the _whole _truth… But I meant most of what I said, _and_ Choutarou doesn't realize I didn't mean it all._

He was proven wrong when Choutarou walked up to him and slapped him across the face.

* * *

_2.5_

* * *

"What the hell, Choutarou?" 

"I could ask the same of you! You know exactly what this is about!"

"No, I don't! Why did you hit me?"

"Because you're a liar! Because almost nothing you've told me so far has been the least bit true!"

"How can you say that? I meant everything I told you! I may have exaggerated a bit of it… but if anything, I was only trying to impress you… I was only trying to show you how much I love you, Choutarou!"

"Is that so? Remember the discussion we had last night? Remember how you said you were standing up for me? I talked to someone who was there, a _very_ reliable source, and it sounds more like you were bragging about how you had managed to get me to fall for you by lying! Lying about respecting me!"

"Who…? Listen, I wasn't lying! You don't know that I was lying to you, ever! You don't have any proof! And I wouldn't do that, Choutarou, really I wouldn't! Not to you!"

"Do you deny that you've insulted me in the past?"

"No, but I've changed! I changed because I love you!"

"Why should I believe you now of all times?"

"I don't know, why don't you ask your bloody religion? Isn't one of those precious Ten Commandments of yours 'Trust your neighbor' or 'Thou shalt not bear false witness' or something? If I'm wrong, well, I certainly wouldn't know, and I certainly shouldn't be to blame."

"Che, you just proved my point for me! You don't respect my lifestyle at all!"

"Because it doesn't make any _sense_ at all! If I was a Catholic, a fundamentalist Christian like you, I wouldn't be fighting back. I'd just stand here and take this abuse. I'd 'turn the other cheek.' But I'm not Catholic, Choutarou. I'm _human_. And that means I do fight back." _SLAP._ "This problem of religion is what's causing all this. It's what's keeping us apart, Choutarou. We've tried to work this out. We attempted a compromise. But if you can't trust me about this, you're going to have to choose. Your religion… or me. Get back to me on that, will you?"

Shishido stalked off, so angry that he scarcely noticed where he was going. But he wasn't so angry that he failed to notice Gakuto run up to Ootori and began talking animatedly… or Choutarou replying, a look of disappointed acceptance on his face.

* * *

**Xiana:** Wait, what? Gakuto!?!? 

**Review, ne?**


	3. Part 3: Consideration

**Xiana:** Here is the second to last part! Now, after you skim through the Suggested Listening to see if I have any musical taste, let's get to the chapter and see what's up with that Gakuto! And did you all get your review replies?

Disclaimers, etc. haven't changed.**  
**

**Suggested Listening:**"HIKARI" by Yoriko and "Lover Boy" by L'Arc en Ciel because they come up in this chapter, and you'll understand it better if you've actually listened to the songs before. "LOVE and LUST" from Sukisyo, sung by Kosugi Jyuurota and Okiayu Ryoutaro(Tezuka!!!) because it might be pertinent, especially with this whole Gakuto showdown we've got going on here. "Purachina" by Maaya Sakamoto. It turns out that it's really called "Platinum" though. I never knew until I was reading a CardCaptor Sakura DVD the other day. Weird!!!

* * *

_**Salvation**_

_Part 3: Consideration_

"_Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others."  
-_Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha)

* * *

_3.1_

* * *

Shishido waited until after school (tennis practice had been canceled for the day due to heavy rain) to accost Mukahi. He found him on the upper level of the school, without his partner, for once, and immediately struck, forcing him into a row of lockers, so that Gakuto was unable to move. "Just what the hell did you say to Ootori that got him so mad at me, huh?" 

"And just what the hell are you _talking_ about?"

"I saw you talking to him after our big fight today. I know you were the one who said I didn't tell him the truth."

"I still don't- Idiot, when I talked to him this morning, I was trying to do damage control. I was trying to help you out!" Mukahi exclaimed, trying to wriggle free.

Shishido, taken aback, let go of Mukahi. "What? You were… trying to help…?"

Gakuto made a show of brushing off and straightening his clothes, as well as distancing himself from walls of any sort, before he replied. "Che, you're lucky Yuushi's not here. He's the only one allowed to pin me against lockers. And yes, after you screwed things up with Ootori, I went over to him and told him that you had been telling the truth and didn't actually mean what you had just said to him. I'm not sure he bought it, but I did what I could, so don't you dare accuse me of screwing you two up."

Shishido stepped backwards involuntarily, bumping into the large glass window behind him. "But…why…? Why would you stand up for me when we've been mortal enemies since the second grade?"

"Because _you_ stuck up for _me_," was Gakuto's simple reply. Shishido still looked confused, so he went on to explain. "Yesterday. With Atobe. You told him that Yuushi and me have 'love.'" Gakuto laughed harshly. "No one's ever done that. No one's ever said that about us before. Just because we're not _ashamed_ of our feelings, they say we're nymphomaniacs. Sluts. Whores. And none of them can ever see why Yuushi chose me of all people when he could have almost anyone in the school. They don't see love. They think it's just convenience or something, like 'If I go out with my doubles partner, I'll be able to jump into the shower for a quick fuck after practice every day.' Which isn't to say that we…don't, because we _do_ and everyone knows it, but that's certainly not the reason why… It pisses me off that every girl in this school with even the tiniest crush on him thinks it'll be simple to take him from me, that all they have to do is smile, stick out their chests, and unbutton their pants to get him to drop me and fall in love with them. For a while, it seemed like I was the only person in the entire world who _didn't_ think it was one-sided, the only one who didn't think that I loved Yuushi and he didn't give a rat's ass about me so long as I kept putting out. But as stupid as it sounds, when you said that, I could confirm what I had believed all along. I could reassure myself that what those assholes said was wrong, that it was about more than fucking, that Yuushi really did love me." He took a deep breath. "Thank you for saying that, Ryou. And to make up for it, I'm going to do whatever I need to do to get you with Ootori. Once that's done, we can consider ourselves even and start hating each other again."

Shishido found himself surprisingly touched by Mukahi's speech. "G-Gakuto… I didn't know that had meant so much to you… I didn't even know you were listening…"

"I've gotten good at multi-tasking. And don't read too much into it." Gakuto blushed suddenly. "That's pretty much your sole redeeming quality, Ryou," he said, not unkindly. "You almost always say what's right. Just not to Ootori."

He glanced out the window and Shishido followed his gaze. Choutarou was sitting outside on a bench, in the midst of the driving rain, but made no move to get inside or protect himself from the precipitation. He had one hand up at his neck, and Shishido realized that he was fidgeting with his crucifix, as he always did when he was upset about something. "You need to apologize to him," Mukahi said finally. "Otherwise you'll never be able to even _talk _to him, let alone get anywhere with him ever again."

"I know." Shishido started towards the exit to do just that, but stopped as a sudden thought occurred to him. "Wait…Gakuto…If you weren't the one who told Choutarou that I was lying…who…?"

A small cough directed their attention to the other end of the hallway. "Gekokujou, Shishido-senpai," Hiyoshi said triumphantly.

Shishido started walking slowly, but ended in a full sprint as he raced furiously towards Hiyoshi, eventually shoving him against the lockers as he had done to Mukahi earlier. "What the hell did you do that for?" he cursed emphatically for the third time that day.

Hiyoshi simply smirked. "Don't misunderstand, senpai. It's certainly not jealousy of you or Choutarou-"

"Don't you _dare_ call him that," Shishido hissed.

"-you or _Ootori-kun_ then. Quite simply, I want to be a regular, Shishido. I don't particularly want to play doubles, but I know that if the 'Silver Pair' is destroyed, you will be dropped from the regulars, since you really don't have any special skills, and I doubt you'll be able to overcome the odds and redeem yourself twice. I'd become Ootori-_kun_'s partner, and after half-a-dozen successful matches or so, I'd move up to Singles 3, if not 2, and eventually take down Atobe himself."

"So…you did all this…just for a permanent spot on the _tennis _team? You made me _hurt_ Choutarou so that you could wear one of these jackets?"

"What do you expect, Shishido? In case you haven't noticed, you _do_ go to Hyotei Gakuen."

"Yes, actually, I do. I attend the bloodiest, most cutthroat school in all of Japan. I've done so all my life. I'm a scholarship student, no less, which means I don't have the advantages that people like Atobe and _you_ have. Over the years, I've learned to defend myself." He drew back a fist and prepared to strike.

"I don't think you want to do that."

"I really think I do."

"Let me rephrase that. I don't think you want Ootori to find out about this."

At this point, Gakuto stepped in. "You know, if _I_ do some damage to you, I don't think Ootori will care as much. And I know that Yuushi will be proud of me for defending myself and my friend. Go to Ootori, Ryou. I can take care of things here."

After a moment's hesitation, Shishido nodded, let go of Hiyoshi and ran down the hall, down the stairs, and out the door. Once the door had slammed shut, Gakuto sighed. "Hiyoshi-kun, you idiot. If I hadn't been here, you could have been seriously hurt. Believe me, I know. I've fought with Ryou a bunch of times and I've _never_ seen him that pissed before. Now… care to explain to me why you were covering for Taki-kun?"

Hiyoshi sighed as well, partially in relief and partially in resignation. "Well, after I left last night, I was more than a little annoyed at Atobe and Shishido. So I started complaining to Taki, and you know what he's like. He insisted on calling Ootori up and telling him all the things I had mentioned. It was my fault in the first place, so I knew I had to take responsibility. Taki was just doing what he thought was right, so…" he trailed off, frowning slightly.

"Hmm…" After pausing to consider this, Gakuto punched Hiyoshi, right in the eye. "Pass that on to Taki for me, please," he requested, grinning. "Oh, and I had to rough you up at least a little or Ryou would never believe that I beat you up. Feel free to mention to him, if you see him, that all the other bruises, etc. are in places not readily available to the public. It'll make them wonder."

"Yeah, yeah. I guess I deserved that."

Mukahi, it appeared, had already forgotten about Hiyoshi, for he had his cell phone out and was talking to Oshitari. "Ne, Yuushi, where are youuuuuuuu… Uh-huh… Yeah, I want to! Oh, you'll be so proud of me when I tell you what just happened, I'm such a good person!" A pause. "Awwww, well if you're a bad person, I guess that just means you get to corrupt me all over again." A longer pause. "Sounds _delightful._ Be right over. Love youuuuuuu…" Gakuto flounced away, completely ignoring Hiyoshi and the scene taking place outside.

"Gekokujou," Hiyoshi muttered pointlessly, and stalked off to find Taki and pass Mukahi's message along.

* * *

_3.2_

* * *

Choutarou couldn't even feel the rain pounding down on him anymore. He knew that he should get inside, so as not to catch a cold, but inside was where Shishido was, and he wasn't ready to face him yet. 

Of course, Shishido_ would_ rush out to him immediately. "Hey, Choutarou! What are you doing out here?" he yelled into the wind.

"I'm waiting for my mom to pick me up! Go back in, senpai! She's on her way and I don't want to talk to you right now!" he yelled back.

"Don't give me that! It's not about us right now. It's about you not getting sick!" Shishido took off his jacket and wrapped it around Choutarou's shoulders before dragging him to his feet and pulling him towards the door to the school. "Come on, Choutarou! Just get inside! I won't talk to you when we get back in if you don't want! Pretend I'm…Kabaji or someone if it'll make you feel better. Just don't be stupid about this of all things!"

"So you'd rather I was _stupid_ about religion instead?" Choutarou yelled bitterly back, resisting Shishido's attempts to drag him back into shelter.

"That doesn't have anything to do with it! Even if you hate me now because of what I said to you earlier today, I still love you, you idiot, and that means I don't want you to get sick, especially if it's my fault! I'm sorry, Choutarou. It's not fair to ask you to make those sorts of decisions. It wasn't fair of me to give you an ultimatum like that! You don't have to choose anything anymore. I apologize, but even if you never totally forgive me, just forgive me enough to let me get you out of this _God-damned rain!" _Shishido roared, pulling harder with each word he spoke. Surprisingly, Choutarou finally acquiesced and allowed Shishido to haul him through the main entrance and into the front hall, where they stopped, catching their breath and dripping on the exotic carpet. An office assistant approached to lecture them, but quickly backed away, and ran back into the office when she noticed the murderous look on Shishido's face.

"I guess I ought to apologize, senpai. I hope I didn't worry you too much," Choutarou finally said.

"What'd you think you were doing, Choutarou? It's okay, but you've got to take care of yourself better. If not for yourself, if not for me, since you –justifiably- hate me now… for the team and everyone who's counting on you. Ne?"

"You… really do care about me, don't you?" Choutarou whispered. "I couldn't see it because you're…so passionate. But could it be that…?"

"Huh? What'd you say? I can't hear you, you're mumbling."

"It's nothing. It's just… no matter what you say… no matter how I look at it… Religion can't co-exist with you. I do have to choose, and it seems like God has already made my decision… or rather, _you_ made my decision for me."

"What are you talking about, Choutarou? I just told you that you don't have to do that, that I was being an inconsiderate ass when I said that. Don't-"

"No! I have to do this, Shishido!" Hands shaking, Choutarou detached the clasp of his necklace and pulled it off before pressing the crucifix into Shishido's hands. "You were right. You've been right all along. Not just the position you made up to try and win me over. The way the_ real_ Shishido-senpai feels is right, and I'm sorry it took me so long to realize it. I was pretending to be… I don't know, just super-devout for whatever reason, to impress God or to go along with what my parents said… but I have emotions, too… and they happen to be strong emotions. I can't believe it took me so long to see that I love you more than I could ever love some… made-up ideal. Oh, Shishido-senpai… I do love you, though. Do you still love me?"

"What do you think, Choutarou? How have I felt about you all along?" Slipping the cross into his pocket unconsciously, he reached up and brushed Choutarou's wet hair out of his face, then kissed him a little nervously. Choutarou responded eagerly, and it would have been a repeat of the events of the locker room last week, save for that this time when Shishido was forced against the wall, Choutarou was holding him up, supporting him, and that any moans involved in _this_ situation had nothing to do with pain.

(The office assistant, emboldened by one for her colleagues, stepped out to accuse the two of vandalizing the school, or at least of getting water everywhere, but promptly stopped and retreated again when she saw what the two were doing.)

All too soon, the cheery tune of "HIKARI" rang out, indicating that Ootori-san was there to pick her son up. Choutarou released Shishido reluctantly, then leaned in for a final kiss. "Let's do something this weekend, ne, Shishido-koi?"

"Um, yes. That would be good. Call me, okay, Chouta?" Shishido was feeling strangely uncomfortable with the whole situation, and not just because all of a sudden, Ootori seemed to be the dominant one in the relationship.

"Of course! Haha, you know this means I'm going to have to change my ringtone for you now. I'm thinking L'Arc en Ciel's 'Lover Boy.'"

"Perfect. See you, Choutarou!" It should have made him happy that Choutarou had given it all up for him, that he had successfully destroyed the final barrier between them. But he couldn't help but feel that someone was making a mistake. Perhaps it was Ootori for giving up on his beliefs so easily. But perhaps it was Shishido, for selfishly allowing him to do so.

Choutarou had already left by the time Shishido pulled the crucifix out of his pocket and stared at it thoughtfully. Perhaps there was still time for compromise, after all. But he was going to need help from –of all people- Atobe and _Jirou_.

* * *

_3.3_

* * *

Prior to Shishido's rescue from the harsh elements, Choutarou had been deeply considering what he had to do. He had realized that Shishido probably hadn't meant what he said about it being a choice between him and God, but couldn't help feeling like he had to choose. He was in love with Shishido, he had figured out, and God loved all of His children equally and unconditionally. In that case, Shishido was the better choice if God would love him no matter what. 

Somewhere along the line, he had decided that his mother and family represented the Lord, while Shishido simply stood for himself. And so he sat outside in the pouring rain, and whichever one came from him first, he had arbitrarily decided, would be the winner, so long as they could prove themselves worthy through the act of retrieving him. It seemed fair.

"_Hey, Choutarou! What are you doing out here?"_

Choutarou reflected on the situation as he sat in the dense warmth of the car. Shishido had come for him first, and accordingly, Choutarou had chosen him over Catholicism. It was sort of strange, really, stopping to believe. It was like a comforting presence that had been with him his entire life had suddenly disappeared, leaving him weak and alone. Did Shishido ever feel like this? Was it something one could get used to? But Shishido wouldn't know, would he? He couldn't know, because he had never known a feeling of God, unless his stalwart belief in atheism produced the same feelings, and Choutarou felt a little sorry for him for that reason. But… he couldn't think about that. He knew it didn't hurt Shishido. He knew it would stop hurting him. His love for Shishido was certainly strong enough to withstand little difficulties like these.

It just seemed a little… suspiciously symbolic that Mom (a.k.a. God, in his reckoning) had arrived to whisk him away right when he was starting to Get Somewhere with Shishido. After all that, he couldn't just go back to that house and start methodically dismantling his old life. He wanted Shishido to help him destroy it quickly and painlessly in one fell swoop. He wanted to forget the past, so he wouldn't regret anything. He wanted to move ahead to the future.

"I miss you already, Shishido," he muttered to himself.

"What did you say, Cho-kun?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just saying that I'm going to need to change when we get home."

"Why? That jacket of yours looks so cute on you!"

With a jolt, Choutarou realized that he was still wearing Shishido's jacket… and that it really was warm and comforting. Just like God had been… no. More comforting. Shishido was real. "N-no, I got caught in the rain, so I'm soaking wet!" Rain represented rebirth or renewal, according to his literature teacher, anyway. After all this, was his decision based solely around trite symbolism? He couldn't believe _that_, of all things. No. It was because he loved Shishido and was finally able to come to terms with that. Nothing more, and nothing less.

* * *

_3.4_

* * *

Shishido didn't know why he had Jirou's phone number. It might have had something to do with emergency contact numbers, or with the time they had all had a party at Atobe's house, gotten drunk (Atobe didn't tell anyone that the glasses contained actual champagne instead of sparkling cider until it was _far_ too late), and swapped cells in what was later termed a "phone orgy" until everyone had everyone else's number stored in their phone's memory banks. 

Regardless, he dialed the number, not expecting a response. Jirou was almost always sleeping soundly, unable to hear the vibrations of a phone, and as Shishido had learned from Atobe's repeated attempts, he rarely even had his phone on. Sure enough, an automated voice began. _"We're sorry, but the number you have dialed is-"_

Atobe then. He quickly dialed the number of "Atobe Tennis Team Hotline," as the boy insisted on calling it.

_"Ne, Ryou-kun? What can Ore-sama do for you?"_

"Well, if it's not too much trouble, would you mind renting something for me? Just for the day, or for a couple hours?"

_"A love hotel, already? Ha, I knew you guys were close, but to think you'd move that quickly… While I don't want you guys to be extremely, overbearingly cheesy the whole time, I certainly don't need another 'Dirty Pair' on my hands… Speaking of which, I hear Gakuto has a membership at the 'Paradise Inn' down the street. You might ask to borrow it from him."_

"N-no! I didn't say or mean anything of the sort! I would like you to rent something_ else_, please…" Shishido quickly told him his plan. Afterwards, Atobe was silent for a long time.

_"Fine, I'll do it for you,"_ he said eventually. _"But don't you think this is a bit pointless? You finally won over Ootori and got rid of the religion you hate so much, and now you want to jeopardize all that for no real reason?"_

"There is a reason. I know if I don't qualify this decision… I know that if I don't make sure it's what he really wants, I'll never be able to forgive myself for hurting him again. It seems like that's all I ever do to him, so if I can break the vicious cycle of arguments and anger, maybe we'll have a bright future together after all."

_"Ugh. You disgust me, Ryou-kun. In return for this favor, please never discuss your feelings about Ootori with me again unless it's a life or death situation… or if it involves tennis, which, really, those are the same things in the end… and additionally, I want you to find some romantic prospects for me. I don't want to be the only regular not in a steady relationship… Can you imagine? _Me?_"_

"Che, that's easy. I can think of at least five off the top of my head. Two of them are even girls, if that's what you're into."

_"Oh, I think I'm a pretty open-minded guy,"_ Atobe said dryly. _"I've spent the last two, three years with Oshitari and Mukahi. I don't think that much of anything's going to surprise me now."_

"Then it's a deal. Hey, speaking of romantic prospects for you, do you know how I could get a hold of Jirou? His phone's off…"

_"M-me… and Jirou? I certainly hadn't considered that possibility… I hate to admit it, but you might be on to something there. As a matter of fact, he's over here with Kabaji and me now. Let me see if I can get him up."_

There was an extended pause followed by crashing, banging, cursing, and what was probably a muffled "Usu" before Jirou finally picked up the phone. _"Good morning, Ryou-Ryou-kun! Well, I suppose it's not technically morning unless you're like me and just woke up! What can I do for you today?"_ he said cheerfully.

"Jirou… Can I ask you why Buddha is so important to you? Whenever the topic comes up, you always get so energetic and insist on sharing your opinion… But"-

_"Buddha! He's the best! That's why! Actually, it's probably because of the super-good way he teaches you to live your life! The _Middle Path!_ No asceticism allowed! None of that ridiculous luxury stuff either, because that makes Buddha, and therefore by proxy me, sad!"_

"That explains why you're always hanging around with Atobe then. You're trying to get him to change his ways, right?"

_"Eheheh… Well, a lot of the time he just randomly kidnaps me while I'm sleeping, I guess… I wake up in his bed a lot of the time, it's so snuggly! And he does treat me to a lot of good stuff… and it's nice having my own personal helicopter since my family isn't near as rich as the Atobe family… huh. Now that you mention it, I'm really not very good at following Buddha's way. But there's more than one way to achieve Nirvana, so I'm going to keep working hard and find my own path!"_ A sudden exclamation, something like "Ganbatte, Jirou-ko!" came from the background. "Heheh, thanks, Amanda-san," Jirou muttered. (Amanda was a foreign maid employed by the Atobe family as a personal servant for Keigo, and as a result, spent a lot of time around the tennis team, especially Jirou and Kabaji, who she thought were just too cute for words.) _"Wait, wait, I know! You could do it! Oh, yeah, you could soooooo be a follower of the Middle Way! Let's face it, you're pretty much as average as it comes! Haha!"_

"Uh, but wasn't Siddhartha Gautama born in total luxury, then became like a mountain goat hermit, and finally the Buddha?" Shishido didn't really like being told that he was average, but it was more important right now to know if he had his facts straight.

_"Hey, yeah…! Ne, Keigoooo… wanna be a mountain goat hermit anytime soon? Ooh, and you should start fasting, and soon I'll be able to poke you in the stomach and feel your spine! …Keigoooo, you're going to need to lose a lot of weight if you want me to be able to poke your spine through your stomach. You're a little chubby."_

Shishido coughed politely to remind Jirou that he was still on the line. "Hey, Jirou, but could you tell me why you're so dedicated to Buddhism? Why you wouldn't necessarily consider joining another religion or giving it up altogether?"

_"What is this, Ryou-Ryou-kun? Some sort of Spanish Inquisition? Are you interviewing me for the school paper? Because when one of those jerks tries to interview me, Keigo-ko usually steps in and forces them to talk to him instead, or he sends Mune-mune to go get interviewed instead, which is always so funny because he always says "Usu" to every question regardless of what is being asked to annoy the reporter and entertain Keigo and me while we wait for him."_

"Jirou, can you just answer the questions?"

_"Wait wait wait! Just one second please… Aha! So it was because you love Oto-to-tan and you made an _awful _mistake and you have to make up for that by giving him his religion back even though you sooooo don't want to?"_

"Yes, that sounds about right. But I can't do that unless. You. Answer. The. Questions."

_"Neeeeee… okay, let me just think for a bit… Part of it is I don't really know any other way, really. And I like the way Buddha and his teachings are presented. There are a lot of little tales about his life that have nice little morals going along with them, and that helps me decide the right way to live. Plus I don't really know much about other religions except a bit of Shinto and Confucianism, and I don't really care all that much about any of the others since they don't have what I'm looking for as far as spirituality goes. Also I think life is too short to get only one shot at it, and it's a lot more comforting to believe that you're coming back if you don't make it to nirvana this time around, and not just thinking 'Oh, I'll just die and nothing will happen.' But you might feel different about it, ne, atheist Ryou-Ryou-kun?"_

"Yeah, I guess… For me, it's not that I don't want to believe in something like that, I just can't find any logical reason to do it."

_"What you should know is that religion isn't based on reasoning. Sometimes, you just have to have faith."_ With that, it all became clear. Why sweet, trusting Choutarou could include religion so readily in his life, and why cynical, suspicious Shishido wouldn't believe in anything unless a miracle was performed right in front of him. It might have something to do with upbringing, but the real difference between them was in personality.

"I…see. Thank you, Jirou."

_"Wait wait wait! Don't go yet! The other thing is, I really am not as…er, faithful's the word, as you might think I am. A lot of what I say, a lot of the things I have, they're to prove I have something. It's a bit like superiority, saying I believe this and you should too. Showing off your prized statue… or your crucifix, perhaps, as a way of displaying your beliefs. Daring people to challenge them. That's probably a bit of how Oto-to-tan feels."_

"R-really?" Shishido was a little shocked by Jirou's sudden confession that he wasn't near as pious as he made out to be, but it also gave him hope on the Choutarou front.

_"Yeah real-"_ _THUD_._"Hey, Ryou? This is me again. Looks like Jirou's out for the count again, what'd you do, bore him to death? Cheesify him into a coma, perhaps? Although, I'm actually pretty impressed that he stayed awake this long without tennis or alcohol involved. Anyway, I'll go set things up for tomorrow, so I'll talk to you later."_

"Thanks. Bye."

Everything hit Shishido all at once when he hung up the phone. Perhaps it hadn't really registered that Choutarou had actually agreed to going out with him, in case it had turned out to be a very nice, but fictional, dream. Maybe he hadn't quite caught the enormity of Choutarou's decision the first time around. He certainly hadn't understood what he had been planning to do for Choutarou until just now, and it was a bit much to think about it all at the same time.

Overwhelmed, he got ready for bed and slid under the covers, clutching Choutarou's crucifix in his hands. It was a symbol of religion, yes, but to him, it simply represented Choutarou. Nothing more, and nothing less.

* * *

**Xiana:** Aww, their ending lines were the same! But what is Shishido's evil plot, and does the 'Paradise Inn' have anything to do with it? Surprisingly, the answer to that last one is yes... Hopefully, everything will be resolved soon. 

**Review, ne?**


	4. Part 4: Revelation

**Xiana: **Here is the last chapter. I hope you all have enjoyed reading it, because it was definitely fun writing it! Heheheh... Section 4.2 is based on episode 112, with some minor changes, in case you were wondering, and it's also the reason I wrote this story... but we'll get to the reason for that in the end note, so let's move on!

All disclaimers, etc. still apply.

**Suggested Listening: **"Fujouri" by Hyotei Eternity (Choutarou's theme) and "Koi no Gekidasa Zecchou (Ecstasy)" by Tachikiri Tai (Shishido's theme). Because they sing in those songs respectively. Why is Shishido's group so random? Also "Death Note Theme" by Yoshihisa Hirano because while I type this my friends are watching Death Note on the school computer. Yaaay Death Note!

* * *

**_Salvation _**

_Part 4: Revelation_

"_But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation."  
__-_Psalms 13:5

* * *

_4.1_

* * *

"So, wait, where are you taking me, Shishido-senpai? Is it… a date?" 

"Something like that… You'll see when we get there. I want it to be a surprise."

"Umm… it isn't… _there_, right? Because I still do love you, but I don't think I'm… we're ready yet… let's not move too fast now…"

"Che, Choutarou… No, I'm not taking you to the 'Paradise Inn.'" Atobe _would_ rent the church next to the love hotel, wouldn't he? Maybe he was still hoping Shishido would change his mind about the whole thing. As if. Shishido had thought long and hard last night, and knew he had to go through with it, no matter how much he didn't necessarily want to.

Plus he would have been sure to swipe Mukahi's card first. He knew from experience (Oshitari's and Gakuto's) that places like that were usually ridiculously expensive.

"Look, we're here."

"Wait… why would you bring me to a place like this, Shishido? Haven't I already told you that I gave up on this type of thing? You're right. We don't need any of this useless religion.

"Hey, Atobe rented this place, not me." Technically, it was true. Choutarou would find out the truth in a few minutes anyway.

"Oh, I see… But at your request, right?" Sometimes Choutarou was more oblivious than a sleeping Jirou, but at other times he was more observant than Hiyoshi when it came to an opportunity for "gekokujou." This was definitely one of the latter. "Come on, senpai. I don't want to be here, and I know you certainly don't either. I'm sure we can find something more interesting to do…"

It sounded far too appealing, but Shishido had A Mission. It certainly occurred to him that he might be doing all this just to show Choutarou that Atheists Have Morals, Too. Laaaaaaaaaaaame. "No, I have to do this with you right now. Then we don't ever have to come back unless you want to."

"Fine…" Choutarou reluctantly allowed Shishido to drag him inside the wooden building of the church. Once they reached the sanctuary area, they sat, almost self-consciously, down on the bench, Shishido clasping Choutarou's hand tightly.

"Listen-"

Before Shishido could get started with what he wanted to say, Choutarou suddenly jumped up. "Oh!" He took off his jacket before folding it neatly and handing it to Shishido. "Thanks for… letting me borrow this the other day…" He sat back down and almost immediately began shivering slightly.

Shishido wrapped an arm protectively around Choutarou's shoulders. "Hey, you're welcome. Che, it's not like I was going to let you freeze to death… Speaking of which, if you didn't bring your own, you can borrow mine for a little longer," he told him, squeezing Choutarou's newly exposed upper arm gently. It was strange for Choutarou to be cold; the boy was usually so warm that he hadn't even noticed that he was wearing his summer uniform in the middle of winter until Shishido had pointed it out to him, and this particular section of the church was in direct sunlight and felt as hot as "Hellfire," ironically enough. But now Shishido's hands, which were usually relatively cold unless he was holding a tennis racket, practically felt like they were burning into Choutarou's icy skin. "Hey, is everything okay?"

Choutarou certainly was not okay. Hadn't he just given everything up? Was Shishido trying to reopen wounds that had just begun to heal? He felt uncomfortable being in this place. The temperature had seemed to plummet at least ten degrees when he stepped into the church, as if the entire building was rejecting him for what it saw as blasphemy against God. As he had told Shishido, he _didn't_ want to be there. When he returned the regulars' jacket to Shishido, the sense of Not Belonging only increased. Without the thin layer of Shishido's Love protecting him, the chill pierced through to his recently-exposed heart.

He wasn't about to tell any of this to Shishido, however. "Huh? I'm fine. But can you please get on with whatever you want to tell me so we can get out of this place? Like I said before, there are plenty of more interesting things we could be doing right now…"

"Okay…" After a second of hesitation, he let go of Choutarou, but continued to hold his hand tightly. "The decision that you made yesterday, it seemed… sudden."

"Don't tell me you're feeling guilty about that. I made my choice on my own, even though you certainly helped me figure out what I wanted," Choutarou responded, surprised by how clam his voice sounded despite his rising anger.

"Guilty? No, it's not that." Shishido leaned over and kissed Choutarou. "I just wanted to know what made you change your mind all of a sudden. I knew we needed a quite place where we could talk –without being interrupted by your mom, for once- so I asked Atobe to get a place where we could do just that, and we were both of the opinion that this would be a very… calming place to do that."

Choutarou relaxed visibly, allowing himself to slump so that he was leaning slightly on Shishido. "It's nothing too important. I just thought about our different ideas about what was right, and then I realized how much I… care about you, and how much you care about me. So I figured that that was the most important thing, and that in comparison, nothing else really mattered, except tennis, of course. It's fairly obvious that you didn't really like my religious beliefs and how they conflicted with us being together. Even despite that, you were willing to inconvenience yourself so that I could be happy about maintaining my faith _and_ you, Shishido-senpai. Because of that, I knew you were too good for me. I couldn't let you make that sacrifice, so I gave this up instead. It's all for the best, you know that, don't you?"

"Che… _You _should know that it wouldn't be 'inconveniencing' me. It'd just be teaching me some of those life lessons I should've learned a long time ago," Shishido said gruffly, turning away so that Choutarou wouldn't see the light blush spreading across his face.

"Maybe that's true to some extent, but I don't think forcing me to return to the religion I already discarded because of you is the right way to go about doing that."

"Well… you're wrong! I told you before, 14 is too young to know your eternal stance on religion…and that includes completely changing your position because of 'love.' Most junior high relationships last, what, two weeks at most?"

"I think I feel a little more strongly than that for you, when you aren't being an idiot like now," Choutarou said coldly. "And aren't you forgetting about couples like, oh, Oshitari-san and Mukahi-san?"

"I did say _most_, and it's probably fair to say that _most_ junior high relationships don't warrant a membership pass to a love hotel, either. It's nice to know that you care about me, though. On everything else, you're dead wrong. You're sweet and all, adorable, tall, powerful, an _excellent_ tennis player, but you're still a second year. I'm a senpai and a third year, which means I'm a lot more mature and knowledgeable about this sort of thing."

"You're only…what, half a year older than me, senpai?" Choutarou was trying to be annoyed, but as Shishido knew from experience, he couldn't really resist Shishido's overly-confident, logically-flawed arguments, especially when they were calculated attempts to amuse him.

"Yeah, well, remember when you were a little kid and insisted on being called six-and-a-half instead of just six? It means you're older when you say it like that. Plus, I'm 15. I'm older, therefore, I'm smarter. And while 14 isn't old enough to know all about life and religion and everything, 15 is. So I know I'm going to be an atheist probably forever, and I know I'm going to keep loving you for at least as long. Having major 15-year-old skills, I'm able to tell –though you certainly don't have the authority or experience to know on your own- that you are madly in love with me… and that you've got to get your religion back before you freeze to death." Shishido hugged Choutarou close, trying to keep him warm.

"Why should I do that? I know that I made my decision because it was what _you_ wanted. And I think you're being a little hypocritical, saying that I changed my mind all of a sudden when you yourself just changed your opinion last night. Not only that… I know you'll keep me warm no matter what."

"I will. But it'd be nice if I didn't have to do that when it's 40 degrees in here. Otherwise, I can't even imagine wintertime –or tennis matches- with you. Choutarou, I think you're psyching yourself out over the power of God. You're probably thinking that no one here accepts you because they all somehow know that you've forsaken religion for a carnal lust orchestrated by hell demons. So if you don't want me to let you turn into a solid block of ice or insist on wrapping you in at least 20 layers of blankets at all times (which makes some things very difficult indeed), you need to get over this silly little mental block that you've created for yourself within the last five minutes. Believe me, whether that means you're converting back to Christianity or that you've decided to worship at the Great House of Atobe, it doesn't matter to me. Because I want you to be happy… and no one likes being cold. We've huddled together for warmth after winter practices before, haven't we?"

"Yeah, we have. In a completely innocent way too, though I doubt that'll continue. I don't want to be cold anymore, but I'm convinced that you can keep me that way. Am I wrong? No matter what you say, your basic motivation here is to get me to convert back for some reason. I honestly don't get it, Shishido. If you hated my previous lifestyle with church on Sundays and grace before meals, why do you suddenly think that there's nothing more important than getting me to accept it again?"

"Because… I want to know about you. Whether I like it or not, Catholicism was the biggest thing in your life before I came along, and even after you decided you were able to love me, it was still probably as important as school, at least. It's shaped you. It's part of what made you into the boy I love. It's also because I… liked who you were before this whole commotion began, before I began to think of you as extreme in your beliefs and before you became someone you're not. Who you're pretending to be right now is someone that's 50 percent me, 49 percent Gakuto, and only one percent the real you. I want 100 percent Choutarou. And finally… it's because I don't know if I can keep you warm all the time. I'm scared that I won't be able to. So I think that some Divine backup wouldn't be entirely unappreciated." Shishido mumbled the last part, tightening his grip on Choutarou's waist. With his free hand, he fished the crucifix out of his pocket and offered it hesitantly to Choutarou.

"Are you… sure? Is this really what you want?"

"I only want you to be happy. If this is what'll make you my sweet, warm, lovable, and happy Choutarou again, yes, it's what I want."

"I don't think I've changed all that much, compared to what you seem to think has happened. I may be a little annoying sometimes, but I don't think I'm that much like Mukahi-senpai."

"You've changed more than you think. Normal Choutarou is a lot more polite and doesn't talk bad about his senpai-tachi, even if they deserve it."

"We sure argue a lot, don't we? I mean, we're always bickering over something, even before this whole religion controversy started."

"Yeah. Doesn't mean we don't love each other."

"True." After a second of hesitation, Choutarou allowed Shishido to put the necklace back on him, the crucifix swinging down to its customary position at the base of his collarbone. Almost immediately, the temperature seemed to rise, and the church began to feel less imposing and more welcoming. Choutarou had learned his lesson, and wouldn't turn his back on God ever again, now that he knew the sense of confusion and unease that went along with forfeiting his beliefs. Shishido had also gotten the message that he needed to be more accepting, and that it was, in fact, possible for Choutarou to love both him and his God at the same time.

"Warming up a little there?" Shishido asked, squeezing Choutarou's hand after noticing that his shivering had completely stopped.

"Yeah. Thank you, Shishido-senpai."

"That's what best friends do for each other. More to the point, that's what lovers do for each other."

"What's this? Shishido… are you blushing? Aww, are you embarrassed? How sweet!"

"Shut up."

Choutarou pecked Shishido on the cheek. "Hey, now that we've got one issue worked out…"

"…It's time to go back to Shishido's house and play the 'make-out game?'" Shishido suggested.

"No, not yet… You got to resolve one thing, so now I get to, too." Choutarou hit Shishido playfully.

"Aaaaahh! I hope you're planning to address this abuse issue… otherwise I may have to leave you for someone nicer and fluffier… you know, someone like Jirou. Anyway, go ahead."

"Aww, but it's so fun beating on you… and you wouldn't ever leave me for Jirou, no matter how bad things between us get, because he's not your type and you're my love slave."

"No way! Other way around! Che… I thought I changed you back to your normal uke self!"

"Eh, I'll prove my… _superiority_ to you later. Right now, well… do you think I could tell you what my ideas were for the compromise we were working on a while ago?"

"Go ahead."

"Okay, what I've thought of for this is a lot less complicated than what you came up with. First: I stay Christian. I'm willing to explore other possibilities besides Catholicism, but I'm keeping the basics of my faith as a whole. Second: You can have whatever beliefs you want, meaning you can stay an atheist, or worship at –what was it you said?- 'Great Atobe Church' or whatever you want. Third: We respect the beliefs of others, unless it's something _completely_ ridiculous, like the ones that Jirou complains about sometimes, or if it's something that's highly prejudiced and insensitive, like Nazism or the KKK. Fourth: You go to church with me sometimes, but we can work on finding one that'll work for you and me both. Fifth: I skip church to be with you sometimes, so it kind of cancels out the last one. The sixth and final one, which I just came up with is that… that we promise to always take care of and love each other for as long as we're together. So, what do you think?"

"Sure you don't want to add four more? Round it off to a nice even 10 Commandments?"

"Shishido…"

"Yeah, yeah, sorry. Well, I'm _starting_ to think Atobe's got a point when he says we're cheesy. Let's face it, we're both a couple of hopeless romantics."

"We _are_ terribly romantic, aren't we? That isn't normal for teenage boys, is it?"

"We aren't normal… We're the best doubles team in the country, plus, we happen to be gay and in love with each other."

"True again. But what did you really think about it?"

"Eh, well, other than that, it sounds good, very fair, and you definitely know how to get to the point. Shall we call it official and have done with it once and for all?"

"I'll agree to that for sure."

Shishido held his hand out formally. Choutarou shook it with equal ceremony before letting Shishido (who was still smarting from Choutarou's earlier comment about "superiority") push him down so that he was lying horizontally on the wooden bench. Forgetting that they were planning on going back to Shishido's house, they kissed, happily making up for time lost to theology. Fortunately, they were alone in the sanctuary room, because while God seemed to have re-accepted Choutarou (actually, it was the other way around), other people didn't necessarily have the same tolerance the two had recently acquired.

At least, they _thought_ they were alone, for when they finally separated, Gakuto stomped out from around the corner. "No, don't stop there! I'm going to lose the bet!"

"Ne, Gakuto, by telling them about it, you've already lost," Oshitari informed him, sidling around the other corner. "In case you were wondering, we had a little bet on just how far you two would go. This guy thought you'd go all the way, and I knew you wouldn't get much past kissing, though to be fair, I expected a bit more gropage."

"M-Mukahi-senpai… Th-this is a church!" Choutarou said, mortified.

"Che, so? What does that matter?"

"It matters because around here, we like to respect religious beliefs," Shishido told him.

"Yeah, yeah. Ne, Yuushi. I don't have my wallet on me, so I can't pay right now."

"I took the liberty of taking it from you for safe keeping." Oshitari produced a small leather wallet from a pocket.

"Oh… I see. I thought you were just groping me at the time. It's hard to tell sometimes."

"Excuse me, but would you mind moving on with whatever it is that you're doing and leaving us alone?" Choutarou politely requested.

"Yeah, yeah. We're going." Before they disappeared, Gakuto managed to slip something into Shishido's pocket, and the last they heard of the two was the rather horribly suggestive statement, "I _love_ losing bets to you, Yuushi…"

Feeling that he already knew what Mukahi had given him, Shishido said dryly, "Unless you want to do something along the lines of what _they're_ doing to do, I suggest we go back to my house."

"I understand. I don't really want to be like them, I don't think. Maybe we can be more like Seigaku's Golden Pair."

"What, and lose our perfect record?"

"No! Just be generally perfect for each other and annoyingly cute to everyone that doesn't have a similar relationship."

"I suppose that since you're taller, I'll be forced to sit on your lap when we go to the movies together."

"It's not my fault that I'm tall."

"Freak of nature."

"Love you too, Shishido-senpai."

Being properly respectful of religious observances, they waited until they were back at Shishido's house this time before they started doing things that, while strictly rated PG-13, weren't widely approved of by extreme members of the Christian faith. Though, to be honest, they weren't much thinking of that at the time.

* * *

_4.2_

* * *

"Ikyuunyuukon!" Choutarou launched another serve at the Seigaku player. The team had recently taken to calling them "Shishido Serves" rather than "Scud Serves" because, as Atobe put it, "We all know that Ootori's heart and soul belong to Ryou. Plus, 'scud' is a stupid American word. What does it even mean? I mean, I'm fluent in English and I still couldn't tell you what it stands for! And why did we ever call it a 'Scud Serve' in the first place?" (Hiyoshi managed to successfully "Gekokujou" him by telling him that it actually referred to a type of missile made by the Soviet Union during the Cold War, but Atobe discovered that "scud" was simply a verb meaning "to move at an extremely rapid rate," and forced Hiyoshi to practice with the freshmen for three weeks.) However, the Seigaku team was unaware of the name change (Hyotei planned to keep it that way, to make them look stupid) and kept gasping about the ball's incredible speed: "I… I think that serve's gotten even faster… I wouldn't want to face that _Scud Serve_ again…" It was all thanks to Shishido's fine training method, of course, but he tried not to brag and just watched proudly from the sidelines instead, since his match with Oishi was already over. 

The opposing player, Kawamura, was trying to recover, but all of the weaknesses that Kaidoh-Inui pair had exploited had been repaired, and all he had left to rely on was some sort of… once-per-match-type destructive technique?

"It's… the Dash Hadokyuu!"

Everyone gasped as the tennis ball flew past Choutarou, passing scant millimeters from his face. Its massive force was even enough to break his necklace, sending the cross and its sad-looking strap sailing across the court and over to the fence. Shishido bent over and picked it up automatically, noticing how worn the leather band was, as if just a small breeze could have done the same damage as that last point. Ever since he had given it back to Choutarou, he hadn't seen the other boy take it off, even in the shower. (Not that he was watching. He simply noticed that Ootori didn't leave it on top of his pile of clothes, like he did his badge and watch. He would leave the bathing antics to Oshitari and Mukahi; they seemed to be doing all right with that.) Perhaps it had doubled in symbolic value, containing both God and Shishido within its ignominious metal structure. Choutarou had always been kind of weird about things like that.

Kawamura had been forced to forfeit the match, so Choutarou shook hands with him politely before going off in search of the crucifix. "Hey, Choutarou! I've got it, don't worry." Choutarou's face resolved into a bright smile, and he practically skipped up to Shishido.

Shishido attempted to hand it to him, but Choutarou pouted at him. "Hey, it broke… I can't tie it by myself, no skill, remember? You'll have to do it for me, senpai." He grinned mischievously.

"Fine, fine." Shishido stood as straight as possible without going to his toes (damned if he'd give Choutarou the pleasure of feeling tall) and leaned into him, arms tightly around his neck, presumably to tie a knot in the broken cord. Choutarou waited until Shishido was finished and had started backing away from him before grabbing Shishido, lifting him off the ground, spinning him around, and kissing him lovingly.

"You're so helpful when it comes to tennis… _partner_," he smiled between smooches. "I can't imagine what I did before I had your love."

"Technically, I would have still helped you our. We were doubles partners before we started dating, if you recall," Shishido reminded him, tracing his lips briefly with a finger before he stopped suddenly. "Wait, the necklace…"

"Ah! It fell off again? Bad tying skills, Shishido! Hey, will you get it for me? It's just under my shirt…"

"You can't get it yourself?"

"My hands are full of you."

"Fair enough," Shishido muttered, purposefully letting his cool hands wander over as much of Choutarou's warm skin as he could get away with before retrieving the cross. "Let's go buy a new chain for this sometime, okay?"

"Sounds good. Will you hold on to it until then?"

"Yeah, I guess. You trust me with it?"

"Shishido… I've always trusted you with my heart. Why should this be any different?"

"Choutarou… you really feel that way?"

"Of course, senpai. Don't you… feel the same?"

"Yes, of course. Heh, I'm just sad that I don't have a special serve, move, or anything because I want to name something after you too."

"Awww…" Kikumaru and Oishi approached the pair.

"I guess everything worked out in the end, ne, Ootori-kun?"

"You never came back and told us what happened, so we figured we'd have to come see for ourselves. Lucky we had this training camp, huh?"

"Nyaa, but when we were walking up, you kinda gave us our answer…"

"Haha, sorry guys. I guess I just got a little carried away with my newly-found love and forgot all about you."

"That's so like someone in love, to forget about all their friends at a time like this. When he breaks your heart, you'll come running back to us soon enough," they teased.

"Hey! Shishido would never do something like that to me!"

"That's what they all say…"

"Excuse me," Shishido interrupted, "but what the hell are you talking about?"

"Well, back when you were being a jerk, I went to talk to them about our relationship…"

Shishido looked completely betrayed.

"What else was I supposed to do, senpai? _You_ were monopolizing Atobe and Jirou and all the others… I suppose I could have talked with Mukahi-senpai and Oshitari-senpai, but I just didn't think they'd be all that helpful… and anyone that's not on the tennis team wouldn't get it!"

"Yeah, I guess… but why them? Why Seigaku?"

"I think that they're a nice team, even if they're one of our greatest rivals or something. The only other team I could think of with a similar relationship was the pair from Rikkai Dai, and I've heard they're very tricky, so they might not be too helpful. Plus, I've never met them, and these guys are really nice!"

"Okay, okay. I don't really blame you. I know I got advice of my own… I guess I just want you to come to me first."

"Aww, Shishido-senpai… From now on, I'll be sure to do that."

Kikumaru laughed suddenly. "You guys are just too cute. Remember when we were like that, Oishi?"

"You mean, constantly needing to reaffirm our love for each other every few seconds? Yeah, I remember. We were so young then…"

"What are you, an old married couple?" Shishido asked sourly. In response, they held up one hand each, revealing matching silver rings and grinned.

"We may not be married, per se…" Oishi began.

"But we've been around a lot longer than you two have…" Eiji continued.

"And we're so perfect for each other that we might as well be!" they concluded together.

"Showoffs," Shishido scoffed.

"Just because they can finish each others' sentences…" Choutarou sighed.

"They think they're better than us," they finished.

Oishi and Eiji laughed at them again. "Like I said, so cute… You two have fun now! We better get back to our team…"

Immediately after they left, Oshitari and Mukahi approached, the latter shooting an angry glare at Kikumaru as he approached. "Ooh, I just hate that guy so much!" he was complaining to Oshitari. "He thinks he's better than me at everything, but he's worse! And his man isn't _nearly_ as pretty as you are, Yuushi!"

"Be that as it may… he's certainly not all that bad."

"Ne! What do you mean, Yuushi! You're not allowed to talk to him!"

"Even when such conversations result in me learning about things such as… _that_?"

"Yuushi! You didn't… not _that_… not with _him_!" Gakuto looked as if he was about to burst into tears, stomp away angrily, or start attacking Oshitari. He was going to implement a strategy using a combination of the first and last options, but Oshitari knew how to calm him down, and proceeded to do so.

"It wasn't anything like that, you idiot," he murmured into Gakuto's ear, then pushed him into a nearby tree and started doing…_something_. (At this point, Shishido and Ootori felt it might be best if they pretended they hadn't seen the two coming towards them at all, and began to talk rather loudly and cheerfully about their recent match against Mizuki-Kamio pair down at the practice courts.)

When the moans became a little too loud for their tastes, they edged away slowly, still discussing how surprisingly effective the doubles pairing had been. However, Oshitari and Mukahi seemed to have decided that they had had enough fun, because after some minor adjustments to their clothing, they rushed back over to the Silver Pair.

"You two are certainly starting to look like a real couple," Oshitari commented, light glinting evilly off his glasses.

"Yes, yes!" Gakuto agreed. "Hey, had occasion to use my generous gift yet?" He elbowed Shishido, who backed away nervously.

"Un, no, Gakuto. We've only been, er, dating for a month now…" he replied slowly.

"So?"

"So we think that we're going to take our time about this. And in case you haven't noticed, we're still only in junior high…"

"So?" Gakuto obviously didn't get it.

"Mukahi-senpai… I think it's important that not to hold others to your own standards," Choutarou tried.

"But it's going to expire soon!"

"We've got a whole year left to use it, okay? We have time!" Shishido finally snapped.

"Che, calm down. I was just asking."

"We only wanted to see how you were doing, and whether or not you need any… _encouragement_ from us."

"N-no, we're good. Really, we are. No more major fights or controversy for us recently…"

"Oh, Shishido-senpai, are you sure? Remember in the middle of church service last week when you stood up and started yelling at the pastor?"

"You know what, he deserved it! He was talking about atheist-type people like myself as if we were responsible for all the evils of the world!"

"Well, you certainly didn't have to start throwing Bibles at him…"

"It was very high in irony value, okay? And maybe I did get just a little carried away… but if you remember, I did make it up to you already…"

"That's right, I forgot. Sorry."

"Oh, you two were doing something like going to a new church every week So That We Can Find A Place That Shishido Will Approve Of, right?"

"Something like that… Obviously, that one didn't quite live up to expectations…" Choutarou grinned guiltily at Shishido.

"Interesting, interesting. I hope that works out for you."

"Thanks. I'm sure it will."

They too finally moved away, and were soon replaced by the commanding presence of Atobe Keigo-sama himself. "You two have been-"

"'really cute?' Atobe, we've heard this all before. Leave us alone, will you?" Shishido interrupted, a bit annoyed that everyone was insisting on congratulating him and Choutarou today.

"-_working really hard lately_, actually. I was going to ask you if you wanted to enjoy a long weekend together at one of my countryside resorts, but if you hate me so, I suppose I could extend the invitation to Hiyo-kun and Takkun instead…" Atobe frowned.

"Sorry, Atobe-buchou. It's just that Oshitari-senpai, Mukahi-senpai, Oishi-san, and Kikumaru-san had just said very similar things to us… and to be honest, it was getting a little annoying," Choutarou admitted.

"Yes, Gakuto has that effect on people." Atobe sniffed. "I will accept your apology, then, and let you use the mansion on one condition. You, Shishido Ryou, must tell me the rest of the names on your list!"

"Eh? What list is this…?" Choutarou wondered.

"I'll tell you later… Ne, Atobe. I wrote this out in case you asked." Shishido retrieved a folded paper from his bag and handed it over.

Atobe unfolded it and read it over, frowning slightly. "Are you sure about this?" he asked finally. "There are a lot of names on this list, and some of them make absolutely no sense. Who's this 'Honda Kyoko' person?"

"Atobe… she's the captain of the girls' tennis team at Hyotei."

"Oh… Er, well… what about this 'Sanada?'"

"Vice-captain of Rikkai Dai, the best team in the area."

"Oh… right… It's confusing when you use nothing but kanji, all right?"

"All right, Atobe."

"You will still be allowed to visit for the weekend, but Ore-sama does not appreciate your insubordination."

"_Goodbye_, Atobe."

"I see how it is… Fine, I didn't want to be around you anyway." He marched away, pointedly ignoring them.

Thankfully, no one else came up to bother them, and they were able to finish their conversation in peace.

* * *

_4.3_

* * *

The day after that, they bought a new chain, and Shishido was again able to return the crucifix to Choutarou, under rather different circumstances this time. The golden chain caught the light brilliantly, drawing attention to the rather dull cross. It still seemed symbolic to Shishido, who couldn't help but think that Choutarou's Necklace Equals God, and he decided that perhaps The Chain Equals Shishido's Love For Choutarou. Choutarou, to be perfectly honest, just thought that it was very nice of Shishido to buy him a new necklace, even if he wasn't sure that gold had been the best choice. 

The next weekend, they worked hard on "deepening their relationship" at Atobe's Kansai manor. This consisted mainly of the two practicing tennis in an attempt to find a special move for Shishido that could be named after Choutarou, but the only one Shishido could perform well enough to live up to the Ootori name was the "Snake Shot," and this struck them as so ridiculously ironic that they decided simply to keep working. Of course, they did Have Fun with the huge indoor pool. (The servants, who had seen Oshitari and Mukahi use that same pool –and had been forced to clean it up afterwards- were not entirely impressed with their childish attempts to drown each other, some very wet underwater kisses, and the time that Shishido accidentally-on-purpose pulled Ootori's swim trunks off during a game of "Marco Polo.")

The combination of Valentine's Day and Choutarou's birthday led to them both officially Coming Out to their parents, for one reason or another. The Ootori family was shocked, and Choutarou was grounded for several months and forbidden to see Shishido, but this was fairly ineffective since they were doubles partners and would have found a way around it even if they hadn't been. The Shishido family had suspected it all along, and welcomed Choutarou to move in with them if his family ever got unbearable.

Several months later, they finally got around to using the coupon that Gakuto had given them for a free night's stay at the "Paradise Inn." However, when night came, they were too embarrassed by their surroundings to do more than a bit of half-hearted kissing, and consequentially spent an uncomfortable night tossing and turning on the frilly, heart-shaped bed. It was a bit of a relief when morning and checkout time came. Oshitari told them that they would get used to it. They weren't entirely sure that they wanted to.

The following weekend, they stayed at Atobe's house again. The servants were slightly more scandalized this time, but of course after Mukahi and Oshitari, nothing really surprised them.

In Shishido's first year of high school, they finally found a church that suited them both. It was a branch called "Salvation Free Church." It seemed open-minded enough with the same traditional values that Choutarou had grown up with, and the only thing that Shishido could find fault with (besides the fact that God Is Worshipped Here) was the name.

"'Salvation Free Church? Come on… that's so lame," he complained on more than one occasion.

"I think it's perfect for us," was Choutarou's usual response.

"Why's that? You think we're lame?"

"Noooooo… It's free, and you're a very cheap person sometimes, Ryou…"

"Thanks, Choutarou. Love you too."

"And well, you… You've always been my salvation."

The only response Shishido had –the only one he could have- was a tight embrace, a passionate kiss, and the half-whispered words, "And you'll always be mine."

* * *

**Xiana:** Aww, Shishi... How cute. I'm sorry it took me so long to update again. Well, this story marked my 200,000th word ("been"), so that's pretty exciting, I guess, meaning that by the estimation of **IceDevine** I've written about 1000 pages worth of fanfics. Crazy! Ehhh... for anyone who has any random questions about this story, I've prepared some notes. 

**1.** This story was based off of episode 112, where Choutarou goes vs. Taka and Gakuto vs. Momo. I watched that part where Taka hits Dash Hadokyuu back at Cho, and his lucky necklace flies away! I was like: "Gasp, symbolism!!!" It didn't help that we were doing religion units in pretty much every class. Some of the facts were changed a bit, like when Shishido gave it back to him and they said "Gekidasa Daze" at the same time, while in this story something a little more... romantic? happened. But their facts are off a bit because the crucifix was _clearly_ seen to be flying through the air, but then it just fell straight down, and then all of a sudden Shishido had it, so I don't even know what happened there. Anyway, that section might feel a bit out of place, but it's the reason I started writing this so I couldn't very well leave it out now could I?

**2.** I liked writing about Gakuto even though he's annoying, so he ended up taking over certain parts of the story. And then it's fun writing adjectives/adverbs about Oshitari, so he showed up a couple times too.

**3.** I don't know what it is about me and love hotels. I just like writing about them... Heheh... Plot bunny. Maybe I'll get to that someday... Heheheh...

**4.** Silver Pair is far too adorable. However, the thing about me is that I subconsciously keep certain themes running through the whole story, like Fluffiness and Being Adorable and Not Being Entirely In Character, and every once in a while, I realize that I'm doing it. So I have them comment about it. That was that whole conversation in 4.1 about the being romantic thing, and it also has to do with Shishido seeing symbolism in the cross, etc., and it also has to do with whenever anything Ironic was mentioned. I'm weird, I know.

**5.** I would have had this up earlier, but about half of 4.1 (Everything from sitting down in the church to the part where Gakuto comes in) wasn't... actually in the original version. I wasn't in the mood for writing that scene at the time, so in that version, it moves WAY too fast. It's no bueno. Luckily, I was able to rewrite it. It helped that as soon as I finished this story, I immediately started missing it. So I was able to work everything out for the best, I think.

**6.** I almost forgot about this note! Degrees and distances and stuff were all in metric. So when Shishido said it was 40 degrees in the church, he really meant it was over 100 Fahrenheit. For all you Americans out there ;D

**7.** The phrase "phone orgy" from the last chapter was coined by **Dragonflyr**. Shishido's statement about playing the "make-out game" came from a certain person named Geoff. It's like a bibliography!

**8.** I like to capitalize words for greater effect than italicizing them sometimes. It came out a little in part 1, but it really started showing up in this chapter. Sorry if that bothered you, but that's how I write.

**9.** I was able to put Honda Kyoko (I invented her in "Challenges") in this story as well, which made me very proud of myself. She's kind of like "Kyoko" from Death Note. (If you know who that is, I am very impressed.) Also, it was recently pointed out to me by **Ramen Ichiraku**, who recently changed her name to **Mon Chat Noir** in the interim between chapters in a very annoying way, that her name is the same as Tohru's mother in Fruits Basket. Oh well! It appears Kyoko's been promoted to the captaincy all of a sudden. I'm so proud of her!

**10. **Yikes. I wanted to write all these notes, but while I was doing so, the word count for the chapter, which was originally 5866, a very interesting number for reasons I choose not to divulge at this time, became almost 7000! Argh! And to think I originally wanted this story to be only one chapter long!

The final word here is "Don't be mean to people with different religious beliefs than your own." Yeah, I'm talking to you, **Mon Chat Noir**. Oh, and if anyone was still wondering, I told you it would be pretty clear how I felt about religion after the story was over. I'm glad I was able to meet both people that were like Choutarou and Shishido, but regardless... I'm mostly like Jirou. Haha!

Anyway, since this story is over... You're going to review now, right? XD


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